Category: Current Affairs

Assam Current Affairs and GK Quiz – Set 286: July 16-18, 2020

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Assam Current Affairs & GK Quiz Set 286 : July 16 – 18, 2020

( Daily and Monthly Assam Current Affairs & GK Quiz & MCQ for APSC Exams and various Assam exams)

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Current Affairs Assam Quiz - Assam exam

Q1. The government of which state has recently decided to upgrade Poba Reserve Forest into a Wildlife Sanctuary?

  1. Meghalaya
  2. Bihar
  3. Assam
  4. West Bengal
C. Assam

Assam Chief Minister, Sarbananda Sonowal has announced, Poba Reserve Forest in Dhemaji district would be upgraded to a wildlife sanctuary. The Poba Reserve Forest was created in the year 1924 and covers an area of 10,221 hectares. It is home to a large number of flora and fauna.

 

Q2. Union Minister of State for Shipping Mansukh Mandaviya inaugurated the first container ship from Kolkata to Agartala through Chattogram Port. Chattogram port is located in which country?

  1. Bhutan
  2. India
  3. Bangladesh
  4. Nepal
C. Bangladesh

This route will open doors of new opportunities for both the countries. It will also provide the alternative and shorter route to connect the North East Region through Bangladesh.

 

Q3. Which institute has developed a portable hospital unit called ‘MediCAB,’ to treat COVID-19 patients?

  1. IIT Bangalore
  2. IIT Guwahati
  3. IIT Indore
  4. IIT Madras
D. IIT Madras

Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT-M) start-up Modulus Housing, has developed a portable hospital unit called ‘MediCAB,’. This unit can be installed anywhere within two hours by four people. MediCAB is foldable and is composed of four zones – a doctor’s room, an isolation room, a medical room/ward and a twin-bed ICU, maintained at negative pressure.

 

Q4. UNICEF India partnered with which company to provide career counselling to young people in the country?

  1. Wipro
  2. Infosys
  3. SAP India
  4. Microsoft
C. SAP India

UNICEF India and SAP India partnered to provide career counselling to young people in the country and aims to improve the employability skills in a COVID-19 and post COVID-19 era.  UNICEF has collaborated with YuWaah (Generation Unlimited) to offer digital education as well as occupational skillset to the underserved young people of India.

 

Q5. Recently, which shipbuilding company has signed a contract to construct autonomous electric vessels for ASKO Maritime AS, Norway?

  1. Hindustan Shipyard Limited
  2. Cochin Shipyard Limited
  3. Mazagon Dock Limited
  4. Goa Shipyard Limited

B. Cochin Shipyard Limited

Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) has signed a contract with ASKO Maritime AS, Norway for the construction and supply of the two autonomous electric ferries along with an option to build two more identical vessels.

 

Q6. CBSE collaborated with which company to integrate Artificial Intelligence (AI) in high school curriculum of 2020-2021?

  1. Google
  2. Microsoft
  3. IBM
  4. Walmart
C. IBM

 

Q7. Pakistan and China have signed an agreement for the 700 MW Azad Pattan hydel power project located on which river?

  1. Ganga
  2. Jhelum
  3. Narmada
  4. Chenab
B. Jhelum

Azad Pattan Hydel Power Project is a run on the river scheme with a reservoir near the Muslimabad village located 7km upstream from the Azad Pattan bridge. This project is the 2nd power project under the China Pakistan Economic Corridor(CPEC).

 

 

Q8. What is the rank of India in Global Skill Index 2020?

  1. 34th
  2. 55th
  3. 42nd
  4. 26th

A. 34th 

In the Data Science Domain India secured the global rank 51(lagging) and secured 12th rank in the Asia Pacific region. India secured the global rank 34 (emerging) in the Business Domain and 8th rank in the Asia Pacific region. In the Technology Domain India secured the global rank 40 (emerging) and 10th rank in the Asia Pacific region.

 

Q9. Government of which state has recently decided to convert waste generated in the state to electricity under an initiative titled ‘Waste to Energy’?

  1. Tamil Nadu
  2. Maharashtra
  3. Punjab
  4. Uttarakhand
D. Uttarakhand

According to Uttarakhand Environment Protection and Pollution Control Board (UEPPCB), this waste can generate up to 5 megawatts of electricity and curb pollution. It will also help to solve the problem of unavailability of landfills to dispose of the solid waste across the hill state.

 

Q10. FIFA World Cup 2022 will be held in which country?

  1. Syria
  2. Jordan
  3. Qatar
  4. Yemen
C. Qatar

 

 

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Assam Current Affairs and GK Quiz – Set 285: July 13-15, 2020

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Assam Current Affairs & GK Quiz Set 285 : July 13 – 15, 2020

( Daily and Monthly Assam Current Affairs & GK Quiz & MCQ for APSC Exams and various Assam exams)

Assam 2020 Yearbook | Quiz Home Page | Quiz Monthly – July 2020 | Current Affairs Monthly – July 2020

Current Affairs Assam Quiz - Assam exam

Q1. The first-ever Bamboo Industrial Park to be set up in which district of Assam?

  1. Goalpara
  2. Majuli
  3. Dima Hasao
  4. Udalguri
C. Dima Hasao

The Bamboo Industrial Park will be set up in Manderdisa in Dima Hasao. The park will be set-up within an area of 75 hectares.

 

Q2. Recently, the government of which state has inaugurated five Water Supply projects worth Rs 48.39 crore?

  1. Manipur
  2. Himachal Pradesh
  3. West Bengal
  4. Meghalaya
A. Manipur

Chief Minister of Manipur N. Biren Singh inaugurates five Water Supply projects and one office building of Weight and Measures Department and Rapid Antigen Detection Testing Centre at Jiribam through video conferencing.

 

Q3. Recently, who has been honoured with the “Top Publicist” award in the Global Humanitarian Awards 2020?

  1. Sachin Awasthi
  2. Anil Prakash Joshi
  3. Venu Srinivasan
  4. Anand Mahindra
A. Sachin Awasthi

The Global Humanitarian Award is known as a part of the honouring the honourable initiative of the World Humanitarian Drive (WHD). The award is to honour the popular men and women who contribute to the betterment of the society and the world.

 

Q4. Which country remains the top trading partner of India in FY 2019-20, according to the recent data released by Commerce Industry?

  1. China
  2. UK
  3. USA
  4. Bangladesh
C. USA

As per the data, the bilateral trade between the US and India in the fiscal year 2019-20 has increased from $87.96 billion in 2018-19 to $88.75 billion.

 

Q5. Which ministry released the ‘PRAGYATA’ Guidelines on Digital Education?

  1. Ministry of Civil Aviation
  2. Ministry of Communications and Information Technology
  3. Ministry of Health
  4. Human Resource Development Ministry

D. Human Resource Development Ministry

Union Human Resource Development Minister Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’  released PRAGYATA guidelines on Digital Education to  provide a roadmap for carrying forward online education to enhance the quality of education. The guidelines include eight steps of digital learning that is, Plan- Review- Arrange- Guide- talk- Assign- Track- Appreciate.

 

Q6. Recently, which giant company announced to invest $10 Billion digitalization fund in India?

  1. Facebook
  2. Google
  3. Apple
  4. Twitter
B. Google

Google will invest close to $10 billion in India over the next five to seven years through a “Google for India Digitisation Fund”which will be utilized in another five to seven years to digitize the Indian Economy.

 

Q7. Which IIT has developed Ultraviolet sanitizing device ‘SHUDH’ to make the surroundings COVID free?

  1. IIT Ropar
  2. IIT Kanpur
  3. IIT Gandhinagar
  4. IIT Jodhpur
B. IIT Kanpur

IIT Kanpur has developed an Ultraviolet (UV) sanitizing product named SHUDH. It is a smartphone operated Handy UV Disinfection Helper. It helps in killing the spread of corona virus at the highly prone places such as hospitals, hotels, malls, offices and schools.

 

 

Q8. India’s first cable-stayed rail bridge ‘AnjiKhad bridge’ is located in which state/UT?

  1. New Delhi
  2. Haryana
  3. Madhya Pradesh
  4. Jammu and Kashmir

D. Jammu and Kashmir

 

Q9. Name the organization, which has recently prepared the White paper on ‘Focused Interventions for ‘Make in India’: Post COVID 19’?

  1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
  2. Health for All
  3. Technology Information, Forecasting and Assessment Council (TIFAC)
  4. Healthcare trade unions in India
C. Technology Information, Forecasting and Assessment Council (TIFAC)

 

 

Q10. Scientists from which country have developed a low-cost method to turn waste into ethanol for use as sanitizers?

  1. India
  2. Russia
  3. UK
  4. Israel
D. Israel

 

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Assam Current Affairs – July 08 – 14, 2020

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Assam Current Affairs & GK – July 8 - 14, 2020

( Covers all important Assam Current Affairs & GK topics for the week of July 8 – 14, 2020 )

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July 08, 2020

Karnataka launches 6 locally developed products to fight Covid-19
  • Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister C.N. Ashwathnarayan launched six Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) approved products made by startups to fight the Covid-19 pandemic. The six products are Shieldex 24, Florescence probes and PCR mix, Daksh, VTM, Cov-Astra and Anti-microbial face wash.
  • Developed by Ravi Kumar at Biofi, Shieldex 24 is a UV-ROS box for Covid sterilisation. It can help eliminate viruses located on objects and is useful in the transportation industry.
  • Govindarajan and Meher Prakash from VNIR have developed the Florescence probes and PCR mix for RTPCR detection. These probes are part of Covid testing kits which are currently being imported.
  • Arun Agrawal from Janitri has developed Daksh, a remote foetal monitoring device which is used in treating Covid positive pregnant women.
  • Manjunath and Dinesh from Deno Bio labs at IBAB have developed the VTM which helps in safely transporting live virus samples from a sample collection centre to a testing lab.
  • Cov-Astra is an Artificial Intelligence based device which can detect Covid virus through x-ray, relegating the conventional throat swab for testing people for the virus.
  • Developed by Adarsh Nararajan from Aindra A, Cov-Astra can help detect the virus at a significantly lower price of Rs 150 to Rs 250 per person.
  • Latha Damle and team from Atrimed have developed an anti-microbial face wash containing herbal anti-microbials, which can kill viruses on the face in a fraction of seconds.
India, Sweden agree to cooperate in fight against Covid-19
  • Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan and his Swedish counterpart Lena Hallengren discussed via video link the status and plans to handle coronavirus and decided to co-operate in the field of health and medicine.
  • The two countries and agreed to hold the Joint Working Group”s (JWG) next meeting by autumn and stay in touch digitally till the end of crisis.
  • Vardhan spoke about the decade of vibrant Indo-Swedish partnership that oversaw 10 JWG level bilateral meetings and mentioned recent achievements of India, like the Ayushman Bharat Yojana that covered 550 million people.
World Bank provides $400 million to enhance support for Namami Gange
  • Indian government and the World Bank(WB) signed a loan agreement of $400 million, to enhance support for the Namami Gange programme that seeks to rejuvenate the Ganga.
  • The Second National Ganga River Basin Project will help stem pollution in the iconic river and strengthen the management of the river basin which is home to more than 500 million people.
  • The agreement comprises a loan of $381 million and a proposed guarantee of up to $19 million. The $381 million variable spread loan has a maturity of 18.5 years including a grace period of 5 years.
  • The World Bank has been supporting the government’s efforts since 2011 through the ongoing National Ganga River Basin Project, which helped set up the National Mission for Clean Ganga as the nodal agency to manage the river, and financed sewage treatment infrastructure in several riverside towns and cities.
  • To ensure that these infrastructure assets function effectively and are well maintained, the project will build on the innovative Hybrid Annuity Model (HAM) of public private partnership introduced under the ongoing NGRBP, and which has become the solution of choice for sewage treatment investments in the Ganga Basin.
  • Government pays a private operator 40 per cent of the capital cost to build a sewage treatment plant during the construction period; the remaining 60 per cent is paid as performance-linked payments over 15 years to ensure that the operator runs and maintains the plant efficiently.
India’s First NPNT Compliant Drone Flight Successfully Completed
  • Quidich Innovation Labs announced the successful completion of India’s First No-Permission No-Takeoff (NPNT) compliant drone flight on the A200 Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS).
  • The flight was carried out in a green zone identified by the DGCA in Karnataka and marks a critical breakthrough in online testing and permission systems. This will go a long way in opening up the skies for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs).
  • MoCA& DGCA released a comprehensive policy on use of UAVs, which came into effect in 2018. Under the new policy, only UAVs which complied to stringent manufacturing standards laid down by the government could be used. 
  • The UAV also had to be compliant with the newly formulated NPNT architecture. A Unique Identification Number (UIN) and an Unmanned Aircraft Operator Permit (UAOP), along with Online permission artifacts (OPA) for every flight, are mandatory.
Himachal Pradesh becomes the first state where everyone possesses LPG connection
  • Himachal Pradesh has become the first state in the country in which every household has an LPG gas connection.
  • HP Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur said that as many as 2,76,243 families were provided free gas connections under the Himachal Grihini Suvidha Yojana.
  • This scheme was launched for those households which were left out of the Central Govt’s Pradhan Mantri Ujjawala Yojana under which connections were provided free to poor women of rural areas.
CBDT, SEBI sign MoU for exchange of data
  • The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) and the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for data exchange between the two organisations.
  • The MoU will facilitate the regular sharing of data and information between the SEBI and the CBDT on an automatic and regular basis.
  • SEBI and the CBDT will also exchange with each other, on request and suo moto basis, any information available in their respective databases, for the purpose of carrying out their functions under various laws.

July 09, 2020

UP govt approves new start-up policy 2020
  • UP state government has approved the UP-Start-up Policy 2020 to promote fledgling units in various areas including agriculture, health, power, education, tourism and transport.
  • Objective of the policy is to ensure that UP is ranked within the first three states in the Centre’s start-up rankings, create 100 incubators with, at least, one in each district, create an ecosystem to promote at least 10,000 start-ups, set up state of the art excellence centres and create India’s largest incubator in Lucknow.
  • The policy will be valid for five years and will provide direct employment to 50,000 people and indirect employment to 1 lakh.
  • There are more than 1,800 start-up units registered with the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade under the Centre and since there is no holistic policy for start-ups, it was decided to create an ecosystem for promotion of start-ups which would require a new policy.
  • The state government is already providing start-ups with a subsidy and has started a Rs 1,000 crore fund to promote new entrants in the field.
Punjab okays Rs 3,200 crore for Industrial park and manufacturing cluster
  • Punjab govt approved development of a modern Industrial Park and Integrated Manufacturing Cluster near Ludhiana and Rajpura, respectively, at a cost of Rs 1,600 crore each.
  • The two projects, be set up in 1,000 acres each, the projects will help prospective entrepreneurs and industrialists set up ventures, will help accelerate industrialisation and create jobs.
  • The And Integrated Manufacturing Cluster near Rajpura in the Patiala district will be developed with the help of the National Industrial Corridor Development Corp.
  • To mobilise additional revenue, the cabinet gave the go-ahead to raise the mutation fee from Rs 300 to Rs 600. Accordingly the State Govt asked the Revenue Department to launch a campaign for clearing all pending mutations in the interest of landowners.
Union Cabinet approves Rs 12,450 crore recapitalisation of 3 Govt general insurance companies
  • The Union Cabinet approved capital infusion of Rs 12,450 crore for three state run insurance companies, viz. Oriental Insurance Company, National Insurance Company and the United India Insurance Company.
  • The approved amount also includes Rs 2,500 crore infused in FY 2019-20.
  • In the Union Financial Budget 2020-21, central government had set aside Rs 6,950 crore for recapitalisation of the three public sector general insurance companies.
  • The government aims to improve the solvency ratio of these companies before merging theses three state-run general insurance entities to create a general insurance giant.
NSDC, Microsoft partnership to impart digital skills to Indian youths
  • The National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) and Software major Microsoft announced a partnership aimed at providing digital skills to over 1 lakh youth in the country over the next 12 months.
  • Microsoft will collaborate with NSDC’s eSkill India portal to provide free access to learning resources and conduct digital skilling awareness drives, equipping the next generation of learners with the skills they need to find employment opportunities in the digital economy.
  • Microsoft’s this partnership is an extension of it’s global skilling initiative to help 25 million people worldwide acquire new digital skills needed for the future economy.
  • Microsoft’s learning resource centre, Microsoft Learn will be integrated with the eSkill India digital platform to provide access to personalised learning paths and resources that are recently in demand and expected to continue to grow in the time to come.
  • Learnings will cover a broad range of skills, from entry-level digital literacy to advanced product-based skilling in critical technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Cloud computing, providing numerous opportunities for people to reskill and upskill.

FACTFILE – National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC)

  • NSDC is a not-for-profit public limited company incorporated on July 31, 2008 under section 25 of the Companies Act, 1956. It was set up by Ministry of Finance as Public Private Partnership (PPP) model.
  • Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE) holds 49% of the share capital of NSDC, while the private sector has the balance 51% of the share capital.
  • NSDC aims to promote skill development by catalyzing creation of large, quality and for-profit vocational institutions. It also provides funding to build scalable and profitable vocational training initiatives. Its mandate is also to enable support system which focuses on quality assurance, information systems and train the trainer academies either directly or through partnerships.
  • NSDC acts as a catalyst in skill development by providing funding to enterprises, companies and organizations that provide skill training. It also develops appropriate models to enhance, support and coordinate private sector initiatives.
  • NSDC’s eSkill India portal catalogues more than 490 e-learning courses in multiple Indian languages through leading knowledge providers.
Chhattisgarh becomes India’s first state to start e-Lok Adalats
  • The Chhattisgarh High Court and the Chhattisgarh State Legal Services Authority organized the India’s first ever E-Lok Adalat amid the Covid-19 lockdown.
  • About 195 benches were constituted at different places of the state, including remote areas like Sarguja, Kanker, Bastar, Surajpur etc., via video conferencing and 3,135 cases were identified for compromise.
  • 2,270 cases were settled in a single day via e-Lok Adalat.

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July 10, 2020

Himalayan Butterfly ’Golden Birdwing’ is India’s largest butterfly
  • A Himalayan butterfly named Golden Birdwing is India’s largest, a record an unknown specimen had held for 88 years.
  • With a wingspan of 194 mm, the female of the species is marginally larger than the Southern Birdwing (190 mm) that Brigadier William Harry Evans, a British military officer and lepidopterist, had recorded in 1932.
  • The hitherto largest Indian butterfly that Brigadier Evans recorded in 1932 was an individual of the Southern Birdwing (Troidesminos), which was then treated as a subspecies of the Common Birdwing.
  • While the female Golden Birdwing was recorded from Didihat in Uttarakhand, the largest male was from the Wankhar Butterfly Museum in Meghalaya capital Shillong.
India good example in solar auctions amidst pandemic, say UN Secretary General
  • UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said that as the world designs and implements Covid-19 recovery plans, it should invest in a better, more sustainable future.
  • Citing the case of India, he said at the International Energy Agency (IEA)’s Clean Energy Transition Summit that solar auctions have seen popularity amidst the height of the pandemic.
  • A growing number of coalitions of investors and real economy stakeholders are advocating for a recovery aligned with the goals of the Paris Agreement. Bailout support to sectors such as industry, aviation and shipping should be conditioned on alignment with the goals of the Paris Agreement.
  • Praising India, Antonio Guterres said that Solar auctions have seen popularity amidst the height of the pandemic. India serves as a good example.
IIT Hyderabad and Nvidia team up for AI research centre
  • Nvidia unveiled ‘The Nvidia AI Technology Centre ‘, a technology centre at the Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad that will accelerate research in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and its commercial adoption.
  • The collaboration between IIT Hyderabad and Nvidia will focus on advancing AI research in the areas of agriculture and smart cities, besides language understanding.
  • The projects in the area of increasing crop yield using AI algorithms, applying AI-based solutions to support safer transportation systems and better ways of managing traffic, will be taken up.

FACTFILE – Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad

  • The Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad (IITH) is a public technical and research university located in Sangareddy district of Telangana, India.
  • It is known for its academic strength, research, publications and proximity to IT and industrial hubs.
  • IITH was founded in 2008, among the eight young Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs).
  • It was ranked 201st in Asia by the QS World University Rankings in 2020 and 94 among BRICS nations in 2019. Ranks in the range of 601-650 in the World.
  • In India, IIT Hyderabad was ranked 8 among engineering institutes by the National Institutional Ranking Framework in 2020 and 17 overall.
AIIB released $50 million loan to L&T Infra Finance for Renewable Energy
  • Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has released $50 million in the first tranche of assistance to L&T Infrastructure Finance Ltd for funding Renewable Energy projects in India.
  • AIIB invests in sustainable infrastructure, has sanctioned total $100 million loan to unit of L&T Finance Holdings. This is it’s first loan to an Indian non-banking financial company (NBFC).
  • AIIB provide loans for operational infrastructure projects of which majority are backed by tripartite agreements, government guarantee and support from government.

FACTFILE – Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB)

  • The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) is a multilateral development bank that aims to support the building of infrastructure in the Asia-Pacific region.
  • It has 82 members as well as 20 prospective members from around the world.
  • AIIB started operation after the agreement entered into force on 25 December 2015, with initial capital base of $100 billion, which is ​2⁄3 of the capital of the Asian Development Bank and about half that of the World Bank.
  • The bank received the highest credit ratings from the three biggest rating agencies in the world, and is perceived as a potential rival to the World Bank, ADB and IMF.

July 11, 2020

Central Govt to set up Bamboo Industrial Park in Dima Hasao
  • The Central government has decided to set up the first Bamboo Industrial Park in the Northeast in Dima Hasao district of Assam for tapping the immense potential of bamboo sector of the locality.
  • The park on completion will cover an area of 75 hectares, would contribute to the overall economic development of the State apart from developing the bamboo-based industries.
  • The Bamboo Industrial Park would immensely benefit the bamboo growers of the State which has come close on the heels of Assam Govt’s Bamboo and Cane Policy.
  • DoNER ministry has taken at the initiative for setting up this Bamboo Industrial Park.
T-Hub partners MeitY to mentor hardware startups in India
  • Hyderabad-based global start-up catalyst T-Hub announced a partnership with the Union Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) to lead Digital India’s Scale Up programme for hardware and Internet of Things (IoT) startups.
  • As many as 15 startups with leading-edge solutions in mobility, energy, agriculture, aerospace, manufacturing, consumer, healthtech, medtech, smart cities and logistics and supply chain sectors will be shortlisted for the programme.
  • The startups will go through regular interventions through bootcamps and dedicated mentoring organised by T-Hub. The startups will get exposure to design/enhance their hardware.
  • They will receive mentorship in areas such as pricing, go-to-market strategies, fund raising, and will also receive equity-free grants.
BDL signs contract for licence & Technology Transfer of Akash Missile with DRDO
  • Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) has signed a licence agreement and transfer of technology of Akash Missile Weapon System with Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).  

FACTFILE – Akash Missile Weapon System (AKASH)

  • Akash is a medium-range mobile surface-to-air missile defense system developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and produced by Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) for Missile Systems, Bharat Electronics (BEL), Tata Power Strategic Engineering Division and L&T for other radars, control centers, launcher systems in India.
  • It can target aircraft up to 30 km away, at altitudes up to 18,000 m and has the capability to neutralize aerial targets like fighter jets, cruise missiles and air-to-surface missiles as well as ballistic missiles.

FACTFILE – Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL)

  • Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) was founded in 1970 to be a manufacturing base for guided weapon systems.
  • It is one of India’s manufacturers of ammunitions and missile systems. It in Hyderabad, Telangana, India.
  • BDL began by producing a first generation anti-tank guided missile – the French SS11B1. This product was a culmination of a licence agreement the Government of India entered into with Aerospatiale.
Injeti Srinivas appointed as Chairman of International Financial Services Centre Authority (IFSCA)
  • IAS officer Injeti Srinivas has been appointed as the first chairman of the International Financial Services Centre Authority (IFSCA) for the Gandhinagar-based Financial Special Economic Zone, popularly known as Gujarat International Finance Tech (GIFT) City.
  • Injeti Srinivas is a 1983 batch IAS officer from the Odisha cadre and served at the corporate affairs ministry for nearly three years. He has also served as secretary, department of sports, and as Director General of SAI.
  • The main function of the IFSCA is to regulate financial products such as securities, deposits or contracts of insurance, financial services, and financial institutions that have been previously approved by any appropriate regulator in an IFSC.

FACTFILE – International Financial Services Centre Authority (IFSCA)

  • Indian government has established International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) to regulate all financial services in International Financial Services Centres (IFSCs) with headquarters in Gandhinagar.
  • IFSCA will regulate financial products such as securities, deposits or contracts of insurance, financial services, and financial institutions which have been previously approved by any appropriate regulator such as RBI, the SEBI etc., in an IFSC.
  • It will also regulate any other financial products/services/institutions in an IFSC.
  • It will consist of nine members, appointed by the central government, including the Chairperson of IFSCA, a member each from the RBI, SEBI, IRDAI, and PFRDA; and two members from the Ministry of Finance and two other members will be appointed on the recommendation of a Selection Committee.
  • Unification of regulatory activities under one authority will be of immense benefit and would accelerate the development of India’s first IFSC at GIFT City, Gandhinagar.
Odisha Govt launches Bhubaneshwar Land Use Intelligence System
  • Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik launched BLUIS (Bhubaneswar Land Use Intelligence System), the flagship development of General Administration and Public Grievances Departments.
  • Under the initiative, a web and mobile-based solution has been developed to monitor changes in all government lands in Bhubaneswar by leveraging high-resolution satellite imagery.
  • BLUIS is a geo-tagged repository of all the government lands in Bhubaneswar, created through high-resolution satellite imagery to detect all changes taking place on government lands.
  • Odisha became the first state in the country to tap space technology and artificial intelligence for safeguarding government lands.
  • The mobile app also enables crowdsourcing cases of unauthorised land use and can also be used by citizens to report any unauthorised development taking place over geo-tagged government lands. This will check the menace of encroachments of public lands.

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July 12, 2020

Central grant of Rs 631 crore released to Assam
  • The Centre has released the fourth tranche of the Post Devolution Revenue Deficit Grant equated monthly instalment amounting Rs 6,195 crore Assam and other 13 states.
  • The Centre released advance payments of over Rs 631 crore to Assam.
  • Other states which received the grant were Kerala (Rs 1,276 crore), Himachal Pradesh (Rs 952 crore), Punjab (Rs 638 crore), Andhra Pradesh (Rs 491 crore), Uttarakhand (Rs 423 crore) and West Bengal (Rs 417 crore).
  • As per the recommendation of the 15th Finance Commission, equal instalments of the grant have been issued by the Centre to the states since April 2020.
  • The grant will assist the states to take preventive and mitigation measures for containment of the COVID-19 and these funds can be used to cover the cost of consumables, and purchase of personal protection equipment (PPE) for healthcare, municipal, police and fire authorities, besides purchase of medical equipments.
Biosafety level two lab unveiled in Chikkaballapura, Karnataka
  • Karnataka Medical Education Minister K. Sudhakar inaugurated a biosafety level two dedicated Covid and Virology lab in Chikkaballapura, Karnataka. The state-of-the-art lab is temperature controlled and complete clean air lab with fully automated machine for autolysis with RNA extraction.
  • It has contamination free passage for samples through ultra violet pass boxes without the need for human movement.
  • Bio-medical waste disposal from the lab is also carried through contamination free ISO – 8 classification process.
Flipkart signs MoU with Karnataka to promote local art and craft
  • Flipkart has signed an MoU with Karnataka Govt’s MSME and Mines Department to promote the states arts, crafts and handloom sectors by bringing them on to e-commerce and providing market access, under it’s Samarth programme.
  • The partnership will enable Karnataka’s local artisans, weavers and craftsmen to showcase their hallmark products to a pan-India customer base.
  • Both the parties will focus on creating avenues to increase business and trade inclusion opportunities for these underserved segments of the society.
Manipur’s  Gyanendro Ningombam elected as new President of Hockey India
  • Gyanendra Ningombam has been elected unanimously as Hony President of Hockey India. Gyanendra is a resident of Imphal East district, the septuagenarian Hockey lover has long been associated with Hockey promotion in Manipur for the last four decades.
  • He is instrumental in producing eminent international class hockey players from the state. He also served as General secretary of the earstwhile Manipur Hockey Association, and presently Senior Vice president of Manipur Hockey and also of Hockey India.
Indian battalion wins UNIFIL environment award
  • An Indian battalion stationed with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) has won an environment award for a project that aims to decrease waste generation, reuse plastic and build green houses.
  • UNIFIL’s Indian Battalion was adjudged first for a project that seeks to increase awareness and decrease waste generation by planting seedlings in their positions and areas of responsibility and reducing wastage.
  • Other UNIFIL units that received awards and recognitions included French-led Force Commander’s Reserve, Indonesian Battalion, Republic of Korea Battalion and Italian Battalion.
  • The awards commend individuals, UN positions, contingents, sections and units that have demonstrated leadership, innovation or exceptional activities in protecting the environment.

July 13, 2020

‘Ypthimawatsoni’ butterfly discovered in Tripura
  • A team of wildlife researchers has rediscovered ‘Ypthimawatsoni’ butterfly commonly known as ‘Looped three-ring’ after 61 years near a village in Jampui Hills under the North Tripura district of Tripura.
  • Researchers constantly survey the butterflies in North-East India to document current populations, distributions, and status of butterflies for the past five years.
  • Looped Three-ring Ypthimawatsoni, 1893 belonging to subfamily Styrene and family Nymphalidae of insect order Lepidoptera has not been recorded for approximately 61 years since it was last seen in the year 1958 in Manipur. 
  • This rediscovery is also important in the context of updating the status and distribution of the butterfly fauna for Tripura.
United States remains India’s top trading partner in 2019-20
  • The US remained India’s top trading partner for the second consecutive fiscal in 2019-20, which shows increasing economic ties between the two countries.
  • In 2019-20, the bilateral trade between the US and India stood at $88.75 billion as against $87.96 billion in 2018-19.
  • The trade gap between the countries has increased to $17.42 billion in 2019-20 from $16.86 billion in 2018-19.
  • China was India’s top trading partner from 2013-14 to 2017-18. But in 2018-19, the US first surpassed China to become India’s top trading partner.
  • The bilateral trade between India and China has dipped to $81.87 billion in 2019-20 from $87.08 billion in 2018-19 and the trade deficit between the two has declined to $48.66 billion in 2019-20 from $53.57 billion in the 2018-19.
IIIT Delhi develops AI model to repurpose existing drugs to treat Covid cases
  • The Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology (IIIT-Delhi) has developed an Artificial Intelligence (AI) model for drug repositioning in the treatment of Covid-19.
  • Instead of manually going through available drug and checking its effectiveness against Covid-19 one, using AI to speed things up and find the drugs which have the highest probability of success against the disease.
  • The AI model computes the similarity between the chemical structures of the drugs and the similarity between the genomic structures of existing viruses and the novel Coronavirus.
  • The model analyse the historical information about the efficacy of the drugs on different viruses; it selects chemical structurally similar drugs that have been successful in treating viruses that have a genomic structure close to that of the novel Coronavirus.
Russia 1st nation to finish human trials for Covid-19 vaccine
  • Russia became the first nation to complete clinical trials of Covid-19 vaccine on humans, and the results have proven the medication’s effectiveness.
  • Russia had allowed clinical trials of two forms of a potential Covid-19 vaccine developed by the Gamaleya National Research Center for Epidemiology and Microbiology.
  • The first vaccine, in the form of a solution for intramuscular administration, was carried out at the Burdenko Military Hospital and other vaccine, in the form of a powder for the preparation of a solution for intramuscular administration, was carried out at Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University.
Microsoft joins Google to create new generation of web apps
  • Microsoft’s PWABuilder and Google’sBubblewrap have joined hands to help web developers get their Progressive Web Apps (PWAs) into the Play Store.
  • Progressive web apps use emerging web browser APIs and features, along with traditional progressive enhancement strategy, to bring a native app-like user experience to cross-platform web applications.
  • com is Microsoft’s open source developer tool that helps build high-quality PWAs and publish them in app stores.
  • Google’s Bubblewrap is command line utility and library to generate and sign Google Play Store packages from Progressive Web Apps.

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July 14, 2020

Arunachal Pradesh filmmaker Kezang D Thongdok bagged the Dada Saheb Phalke Award 2020
  • Kezang D Thongdok, an independent filmmaker, documented the process of honey hunting has bagged the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award 2020.
  • Thongdok’s short documentary ‘Chi Lupo’ artfully sketches the custom of honey hunting practised in the Shertukpen community wherein ‘Chi’ means honey and ‘Lupo’ means hunters
  • Thongdok’s attempt to depict and preserve the age-old tradition of honey hunting amongst the Shertukpens bagged him the prestigious Dada Saheb Phalke Award this year.
Govt to curb import dependence of APIs/medical devices
  • As part of efforts to make India self-sufficient in manufacturing bulk drugs or APIs, the Govt of India’s Department of Pharmaceuticals is finalising guidelines for selecting locations of three bulk drug parks and four medical devices parks.
  • Currently, India imports more than 70 per cent of its API or bulk drug needs, largely from countries such as China.
  • The guideline will become the basis for selection of developers for this prestigious project which is part of government’s Aatmanirbhar Bharat mission.
  • The guidelines which will form basis for objectively selecting locations of upcoming three bulk drugs parks and four medical devices parks in the country.
  • In order to encourage domestic production of critical APIs and medical devices, the Union Cabinet had recenlty approved a scheme for development of three bulk drugs and four medical devices parks in which the Centre will extend Grants-in-Aid to states with a maximum limit of Rs 1,000 crore per bulk drug park and Rs 100 crore per medical device parks.
  • Govt has also announced a production linked incentive scheme for promoting domestic manufacturing of key critical starting materials/drug intermediates & APIs and medical devices.
Google’s Rs 75,000 crore boost for digitisation in India
  • Sundar Pichai, Google CEO, announced a Google for India digitisation fund through which, the company will invest Rs 75,000 crore or approximately $10 billion over the next five to seven years to help India go digital.
  • The investment will focus on four areas important to India’s digitisation:
    • By enabling affordable access to information to every Indian in their own language.
    • By building new products and services that are deeply relevant to India’s specific needs.
    • By empowering businesses to continue or embark on digital transformation.
    • By leveraging technology and Artificial Intelligence for social good in areas like health, agriculture and education.
India becomes second-largest foreign investor in the UK
  • India invested in 120 projects and created more than 5000 new jobs in the UK to become the second-largest source of foreign direct investment (FDI) after the US in 2019.
  • The US remains the number one source of FDI for the UK, delivering 462 projects, followed by India, Germany, France and China and Hong Kong.
  • The Department for International Trade inward investment statistics for 2019-2020 found India moving up from its previous third-largest spot, representing an overall 4 per cent FDI increase for the UK on 2018-2019 with 1,852 new inward investment projects in the 2019/2020 financial year.
DRDO develops software tool for tracking Covid patients in quarantine
  • The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has developed a software tool for enforcement of quarantine, which will be implemented in partnership with the Telangana Information Technology Association (TITA), an industry body of software professionals.
  • Both the organisations signed an agreement to implement the automated management of the software. The pilot for the implementation is likely to begin soon.
  • The DRDO has devised Smart Automated Management of Patients and Risks for Covid-19 (SAMPARC), an intelligent software for enforcement of quarantine or isolation.
  • The software tool will be a handy tool for law enforcement and health officials, as it would enable intelligent automated tracking of those in quarantine or isolation.
  • It will also generate alerts if there are violations or wilful suppression of movement details. This is expected to reduce the tracking workload of law enforcement or health officials.
  • The online pact was signed by Dr Rituraj Kumar, Scientist G, Centre for AI & Robotics (CAIR) of the DRDO and Sundeep Kumar Makthala, Global President, TITA.
  • The SAMPARC solution can be deployed as a national service by the National Informatics Centre (NIC), or can be distributed as a state-wise or region-wise service.
  • Relying on the information provided by the police and health officials, it allows geofencing, face recognition, display of data on map.
  • The rollout of the solution involves no cost to the patient and local authority needs to position only a suitable computer and the software is based on a combination of open-source software.
  • Details of the patient including name, cell phone number, IMEI of the phone, coordinates of the quarantine location, duration of quarantine, email id and optionally photographs of the patient for AI-based face detection.
  • The app has to be installed on the patient”s smartphone which would automatically send a protected message to the Covid server every 10 minutes. The app would run as a background service that would automatically restart even if the phone reboots.
  • Based on the requirements of the authorities, the patient will be able to send selfies taken through the SAMPARC app to the server for automated AI based face recognition.
Lee Hsien Loong won fourth term as Prime Minister of Singapore
  • Lee Hsien Loong has become the Prime Minister of Singapore after the People’s Action Party won the recently held General Elections. With this, Lee Hsien Loong has won a fourth term as the PM of Singapore.
  • The People’s Action Party (PAP) have won 83 seats out of the total 93 seats contested in the Election by securing 61.24 per cent of the total valid votes.

BIOGRAPHY – Lee Hsien Loong

  • Lee Hsien Loong is a Singaporean politician who has served as the 3rd Prime Minister of Singapore since August 2004. Lee is the eldest son of the 1st Prime Minister, Lee Kuan Yew.
  • He led the People’s Action Party to victory in the 2006, 2011, 2015 and 2020 general elections.
  • Lee graduated from Trinity College, Cambridge University and later earned a Master of Public Administration at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government.
NTPC Limited wins CII-ITC Sustainability Award 2019
  • National Thermal Power Corporation has won the prestigious CII-ITC Sustainability Award 2019, under Outstanding Accomplishment in Corporate Excellence Category. It has also received Commendation for Significant Achievement in the category of CSR.
  • NTPCs flagship CSR program Girl Empowerment Mission, a four weeks residential program has been institutionalized in the vicinity of its power stations for the benefit of school going girls to support in their overall development.
India’s 2018 Tiger census sets new Guinness World Record
  • The fourth cycle of the All India Tiger Estimation 2018 has entered the Guinness World Record for being the world’s largest camera trap wildlife survey. 
  • The country now has an estimated 2967 tigers as per the latest census, which makes India home to nearly 75 percent of the global tiger population and has already fulfilled its resolve of doubling tiger numbers, well ahead of the target year of 2022.
  • The fourth iteration of the survey – conducted in 2018-19 – was the most comprehensive to date, in terms of both resource and data amassed. Camera traps were placed in 26,838 locations across 141 different sites and surveyed an effective area of 1 lakh 21 thousand 337 square kilometres.
Atal Innovation Mission launches app development module for school students
  • NITI Aayog’s Atal Innovation Mission has launched the ATL App Development Module for school children across the country.
  • Through six project-based learning modules and online mentoring sessions, young innovators can learn to build mobile apps in various Indian languages.
  • To build capacities and acumen for app development within school teachers, periodic Teacher Training sessions will be conducted on the AIM App Development course.
  • NITI Aayog is now bringing the skills of app development to the young tinkerers of Atal Tinkering Labs across the country so that they can integrate their Tinkering Lab innovations with mobile apps enhancing the usability and reach of their innovations.

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Assam Current Affairs and GK Quiz – Set 284: July 10-12, 2020

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Assam Current Affairs & GK Quiz Set 284 : July 10 – 12, 2020

( Daily and Monthly Assam Current Affairs & GK Quiz & MCQ for APSC Exams and various Assam exams)

Assam 2020 Yearbook | Quiz Home Page | Quiz Monthly – July 2020 | Current Affairs Monthly – July 2020
Current Affairs Assam Quiz - Assam exam

Q1. Kezang D Thongdok won the Dada Saheb Phalke Award 2020 for his documentary “Chi Lupo”. He belongs to which state?

  1. Assam
  2. Arunachal Pradesh
  3. Manipur
  4. Tripura
B. Arunachal Pradesh

 

Q2. Recently, a team of wildlife Researchers has rediscovered ‘Ypthima watsoni’ butterfly commonly known as ‘Looped three-ring’ in the states of

  1. Nagaland
  2. Tripura
  3. Andhra Pradesh
  4. Mizoram
B. Tripura 

The discovery took place after 61 years near a village called Phuldungsei in Jampui Hills under the North Tripura district. The species was last seen in the year 1958 in Manipur.

 

Q3. Government of which state has recently organise e-Lok Adalats?

  1. Chhattisgarh
  2. Bihar
  3. Rajasthan
  4. Mizoram
A. Chhattisgarh

The “e-Lok Adalat” was organized by the High Court and Chhattisgarh State Legal Services Authority. It was organized in order to bring relief to people and to reduce the pendency of cases amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

Q4. Which is the first state in India to use Space Technology & Artificial Intelligence for Safeguarding Government Lands?

  1. Odisha
  2. Jharkhand
  3. Sikkim
  4. Haryana
A. Odisha

Chief Minister of Odisha Sri Naveen Patnaik launched Bhubaneshwar Land Use Intelligence System (BLUIS) to monitor changes in all the government lands in Bhubaneshwar.

 

Q5. The average global temperatures would rise by 1.5 degrees Celsius, in next five years, has been estimated by which organisation recently?

  1. World Health Organisation (WHO)
  2. United Nations Environment Programme (UNDP)
  3. World Meteorological Organisation (WMO)
  4. International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)

C. World Meteorological Organisation (WMO)  

 

Q6. In which country India Global Week 2020, a virtual conference was organised recently?

  1. Nepal
  2. Bangladesh
  3. Singapore
  4. UK
D. UK

Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the global audience virtually at India Global Week 2020. The three days virtual conference has been organised in the United Kingdom with a theme of “Be The Revival: India and a Better New World” The event will feature the participation of 5,000 global participants from 30 nations and it will be addressed by 250 global speakers in 75 sessions.

 

Q7. Which state topped the market borrowings among States in 2020-21, as per Reserve Bank of India (RBI)?

  1. Tamil Nadu
  2. Karnataka
  3. Uttar Pradesh
  4. Gujarat
A. Tamil Nadu

 

Q8. Name the app launched by Union Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship to help skilled people find sustainable livelihood opportunities?

  1. YUKTI
  2. ASEEM
  3. DISHA
  4. SWAYAM

B. ASEEM

Aatamanirbhar Skilled Employee-Employer Mapping (ASEEM) portal will provide employers a platform to access the details of the skilled workers and formulate hiring plans.

 

Q9. The 2018 tiger census of which nation entered into Guinness Record book for being largest camera trap wildlife survey in the world?

  1. South Africa
  2. Australia
  3. India
  4. New Zealand
C. India

 

Q10. Recently, the government of which state will launch ‘Roko-Toko’ campaign for those who do not wear masks?

  1. Uttar Pradesh
  2. Maharashtra
  3. Punjab
  4. Madhya Pradesh
D. Madhya Pradesh 

The campaign will target on those people who do not wear masks. Under this campaign, the state government will distribute masks to the people who do not wear masks in public places as the use of masks is mandatory in all public places.

 

 

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Assam Current Affairs and GK Quiz – Set 283: July 07-09, 2020

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Assam Current Affairs & GK Quiz Set 283 : July 07 – 09, 2020

( Daily and Monthly Assam Current Affairs & GK Quiz & MCQ for APSC Exams and various Assam exams)

Assam 2020 Yearbook | Quiz Home Page | Quiz Monthly – July 2020 | Current Affairs Monthly – July 2020Current Affairs Assam Quiz - Assam exam

Q1. What is the rank of India in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Index 2020?

  1. 132
  2. 117
  3. 154
  4. 127
B. 117

India has been ranked 117th in the index with overall score of 61.92. Sweden has topped the 2020 SDG Index with a score of 84.7.

 

Q2. What is the rank of India on the Global Real Estate Transparency Index (GRETI) 2020?

  1. 34th
  2. 29th
  3. 42nd
  4. 20th
A. 34th

 

Q3. Government of which state has recently constitutes a five-member commission to protect rights of tribal communities?

  1. Assam
  2. Gujarat
  3. Uttar Pradesh
  4. Nagaland
B. Gujarat

The Cabinet Minister, chaired by Chief Minister Vijay Rupani has taken decision to constituted a five-member commission to decide rightful beneficiaries of Rabari, Bharwad and Charan castes residing in the Ness areas of Gir, Barda, and Aalech forests.

 

Q4. Recently, in which state the Asia’s largest certified tier IV Data centre has been inaugurated?

  1. Telangana
  2. Kerala
  3. Uttarakhand
  4. Maharashtra
D. Maharashtra

The Chief Minister of Maharashtra Uddhav Thackeray has virtually inaugurated the Asia’s largest certified tier IV data centre, near Mumbai. The Yotta NM1 data centre building is the largest tier IV Data centre in India and second largest in the world.

 

Q5. Recently, India and which organisation has signed the $750 million agreement for MSME Emergency Response Programme?

  1. International Monetary Fund (IMF)
  2. Asian Development Bank (ADB)
  3. World Bank (WB)
  4. International Finance Corporation (IFC)

C. World Bank 

The agreement was signed for the MSME Emergency Response Programme to support increased flow of finance into the hands of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), severely impacted by the COVID-19 crisis.

 

Q6. Who has been appointed as a Chairman of the International Financial Services Centre Authority (IFSCA)?

  1. Subhash Chandra Khuntia
  2. K.Ganesh
  3. Injeti Srinivas
  4. Pournima Gupte
C. Injeti Srinivas

Injeti Srinivas has been appointed as the first Chairman of the International Financial Services Centre Authority. As per the notification, IFSCA will be headquartered at GIFT City in Gandhinagar, Gujarat.

 

Q7. Government of which state has recently launched “Weavers Sammaan Yojana”?

  1. Karnataka
  2. Assam
  3. Rajasthan
  4. Goa
A. Karnataka

Under this scheme, 19,744 handloom weavers in the state will get annual financial assistance of two thousand rupees through Direct Benefit Transfer.

 

Q8. Which bank launched its ‘e-Kisaan Dhan’ app for farmers?

  1. ICICI Bank
  2. State Bank of India
  3. HDFC Bank
  4. Bandhan Bank

C. HDFC Bank

 

Q9. Recently, which country’s Railway has installed the world’s first solar power plant to directly power overhead line?

  1. Japan
  2. China
  3. India
  4. Switzerland
C. India

Indian Railways has set up a solar power plant in Bina in Madhya Pradesh. The 1.7 megawatt solar power plant has been set up as a pilot project by Railways in collaboration with Bharat Heavy Electrical Limited (BHEL).

 

Q10. Name the Indian Tennis Player won the PSD Bank Nord Open trophy in Germany?

  1. Sumit Nagal
  2. Leander Paes
  3. Somdev Devvarman
  4. Mahesh Bhupathi
A. Sumit Nagal 

 

 

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Assam Current Affairs – July 01-07, 2020

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Assam Current Affairs & GK – July 1 - 7, 2020

( Covers all important Assam Current Affairs & GK topics for the week of July 1 – 7, 2020 )

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July 01, 2020

Assam government prohibits use of spiked bits on horses
  • The Assam government has banned the use of spiked bits or yokes with spikes on horses, by enforcing a prohibition under the cruelty provisions to the Drought and Pack Animals Rules, 1965.
  • This order was issued recently by Assam’s Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Department Secretary Devajyoti Hazarika following a complaint by the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA-India).
  • PETA India had launched a nationwide campaign in 2019 based on the outcome of a multi-state survey of government efforts to impose a ban on using spiked bits on horses.
  • Other states like Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, Delhi, Karnataka, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh have already issued orders enforcing these prohibitions.
India ranked 117th in SDG Index 2020
  • India is ranked at 117th position with a score of 92and is also facing major challenges in 10 of the 17 SDGs including zero hunger, good health, gender inequality among others.
  • The index has been topped by Sweden with score of 84.72, Denmark scored 84.56, Finland scored 83.77.
  • The 2020 report has reviewed the performance of 193 UN Member States out of which 166 were ranked under SDG index 2020.
  • The report identifies five key measures that global cooperation should include:
    1. Disseminate best practices rapidly;
    2. strengthen financing mechanisms for developing countries;
    3. Address hunger hotspots;
    4. Ensure social protection;
    5. Promote new drugs and vaccines.
  • Since its launch in 2016, the report provides the most up-to-date data to track and review the performance of all 193 UN member states on the 17 SDGs.
HDFC Bank launches ”e-KisaanDhan” app for farmers
  • HDFC Bank launched ”e-KisaanDhan” mobile app for farmers across India to access various agricultural and banking services.
  • The Mobile App, which serves as a repository of knowledge and information for any individual engaged in farming, helps meet needs of the rural ecosystem.
  • This will also provide value-added services, like mandi prices, latest farming news, weather forecast, information on seed varieties, SMS advisory, e-pashuhaat, multiple banking services, like procuring loans, opening bank accounts, insurance facilities, online calculation of KCC loan eligibility.
  • This app is a part of the bank’s ”HarGaonHamara” initiative to reach out to customers in the rural and under-served areas.
World Bank offers $750 million loan for India’s MSMEs
  • The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors has approved a $750 million MSME Emergency Response program to support increased flow of finance into the hands of India’s micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
  • The MSME Emergency Response program will address the immediate liquidity and credit needs of 15 lakh MSMEs to help them withstand the impact of the current shock and protect jobs.
  • The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) loan of $750 million has a maturity of 19 years including a 5-year grace period.
  • This program will support the government’s efforts to channel liquidity to the MSME sector by de-risking lending from banks and NBFCs to MSMEs through a range of instruments, including credit guarantees.
  • The World Bank has so far committed $2.75 billion to support India’s emergency COVID-19 response.
Uniform stamp duty on securities market instruments from July 1
  • The amendments in the Indian Stamp Act, 1899, to bring about uniformity of the stamp duty on securities across states will come into effect from July 1, 2020.
  • Central Govt has created the legal and institutional mechanism to enable states to collect stamp duty on securities market instruments at one place by one agency, through the stock exchange or clearing corporation authorised by it or by the depository on one instrument.
  • The amendment will improve the ease of doing business and bring in uniformity of the stamp duty on securities across states, which can help building a pan-India securities market.
  • Stock exchanges will now collect stamp duty for trading in securities at a unified rate from July 1 and deposit the proceeds with the Centre, which will then divide it among states where the trade took place.
  • At present, market participants collect stamp duty at rates fixed by the state where the trade takes place. This created a complex system with multiple tax rates and differing regulations in different states, posing a challenge to settle deals.
  • Under the new provisions, stock exchanges/clearing agencies would collect duty on securities transactions and deposit it with the centre, for off market transactions platform, the depositories would collect stamp duties.
  • This centralised collection mechanism is expected to ensure minimise cost of collection and enhance revenue productivity. It will help develop equity markets and equity culture across the length and breadth of the country, ushering in balanced regional development.
Microsoft collaborate with Accenture to nurture B2B startups in India
  • Microsoft announced to collaborate with global professional services company Accenture to host the third edition of the Accenture Ventures Challenge for B2B startups in India.
  • It will recognise startups in India in four categories: supply chain resilience, channel shift to digital commerce, systems resilience and responsible technology.
  • Microsoft, in February 2020, launched the “100X100X100” programme to bring 100 companies to commit $100,000 each for enterprise-ready solutions from 100 business-to-business (B2B) startups in the Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) space in India over the course of 18 months.
  • Accenture Ventures Challenge identifies the best B2B tech startups to develop solutions for real-world challenges faced by businesses. Its’ 2020 edition will identify 12 innovative startups that are helping to address the business and human impact of COVID-19.
  • The winner in each category will be given an opportunity to join the Accenture Ventures Open Innovation partner programme and co-create solutions for Accenture clients around the world.

July 02, 2020

 Assam Govt decided to upgrade Dehing Patkai Wildlife Sanctuary into National Park
  • Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal announced that the state government has decided to upgrade the DehingPatkai Wildlife Sanctuary, which is home to a vast variety of flora and fauna, into a national park.

FACTFILE – Dehing Patkai Wildlife Sanctuary

  • Dehing Patkai Wildlife Sanctuary is located in the Dibrugarh and Tinsukia Districts of Assam and covers an area of 111.19 km2 rainforest.
  • It was declared a wildlife sanctuary in 2004.
  • The Dehing Patkai forms the largest stretch of lowland rainforests in India.
  • The Dehing Patkai Wildlife Sanctuary and a part of Dehing Patkai Rainforest, due to their importance for elephant habitat, were declared as Dehing-Patkai Elephant Reserve under Project Elephant.
Railways to invite private players for passenger train operations
  • Indian Railway has invited request for qualifications for private participation for passenger train operations on 109 pairs of routes through 151 modern trains.
  • Railway ministry plans to allow private entities to operate passenger trains. The project would entail private sector investment of about Rs 30,000 crore.
  • The private investment for running passenger trains over Indian Railways network
  • began last year with the introduction of Lucknow-Delhi Tejas Express by Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC).
  • The objective of this initiative is to introduce modern technology rolling stock with reduced maintenance, reduced transit time, boost job creation, provide enhanced safety, provide world class travel experience to passengers.
  • The 109 (origin-destination) pairs of trains have been formed into 12 clusters across the Indian Railway network. The private entity shall be responsible for financing, procuring, operation and maintenance of the trains. Trains shall be designed for a maximum speed of 160 kmph and should reduce journey time.
Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur develops new micro porous film
  • Researcher Dr Tushar Deshpande of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur, has developed an elastomeric film that has multiple uses. The film can be used as a bandage to prevent a wound from getting infected. It will also speed up healing by aiding tissue building around the wound, by allows air to pass but no virus.
  • Deshpande said the film can also separate petrol from water. The film doesn’t absorb any liquid and has been made with polydis methyl siloxin, ethyl acetated and water and its thickness is 150 microns.”
  • It could also be used in making personal protection equipment (PPE) kits to prevent coronavirus infection. The film will also be effective in making tissues of other organs, including heart, liver and brain.
Delhi CM Kejriwal announces India’s first Coronavirus plasma bank in Delhi
  • Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announced the first plasma bank in the country for the novel coronavirus patients in the city and urged the Covid survivors to come forward and donate plasma to save lives. He also launched the helpline number to register names for plasma donation.
  • The patients who were treated from Covid-19 and have completed 14 days after their treatment are eligible for donating plasma. They must be between 18 and 60 age groups, must have weight more than 50 kg.
AAI inks MoA with Cachar District for financial assistance to Cacahr Cancer Hospital
  • The Cachar District Adminstration and authorities of Airports Authority of India (AAI) Silchar airport signed an Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) for providing financial assistance for procurement of ambulance for Cachar Cancer Hospital & Research Centre, Silchar amounting to Rs 13 Lakh.
  • The MoA was signed by Cachar Deputy Commissioner Keerthi Jalli and Silchar Airport Director PK Gorai.
  • As a part of the CSR initiative, the Airport Authority of India will support the project by providing financial assistance for procurement of sophisticated ambulance for the cancer hospital.
World Bank approves $500 million project STARS to better education quality in 6 Indian states
  • The World Bank board of executives has approved a new project worth $500 million to improve learning outcome and governance of government schools in six Indian states.
  • The project STARS (Strengthening Teaching-Learning and Results for States Program) will be implemented through the Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan in partnership with Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha and Rajasthan.
  • STARS will help improve learning assessment systems, strengthen classroom instruction, and remediation, facilitate school-to-work transition, and strengthen governance and decentralized management.
  • The STARS program builds on the long partnership between India and the World Bank, since 1994, for strengthening public school education and to support the country’s goal of providing ‘Education for All’.
  • The program will support individualized, needs-based training for teachers that will give them an opportunity to have a say in shaping training programs and making them relevant to their teaching needs.
India, World Bank sign loan agreements for housing sector in Tamil Nadu
  • The Govt of India, state Govt of Tamil Nadu and the World Bank signed legal agreements to help low-income groups in the state of Tamil Nadu get access to affordable housing.
  • The loan agreements were signed for two projects:
  • The $200 million First Tamil Nadu Housing Sector Strengthening Programme supports the government’s ongoing efforts to increase the availability of affordable housing by gradually shifting the role of the state from being the main provider to an enabler.
  • It aim to unlock regulatory barriers and incentivise private sector participation in affordable housing for low-income families.
  • $50 million Tamil Nadu Housing and Habitat Development Project is also approved to support innovations in housing finance and strengthen housing sector institutions in the state. It will finance the newly created Tamil Nadu Shelter Fund (TNSF) – an innovation in housing finance in India.
  • These loans from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) have a maturity of 20 years including a grace period of 5 years.
Former RBI Governor C. Rangarajan gets Mahalanobis award
  • Former Reserve Bank of India Governor C. Rangarajan has been conferred the P.C. Mahalanobis Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of his contribution to official statistics, on the occasion of Statistics Day on June 29.
  • Rangarajan had also held the posts of Chairman, Financial Advisory Council to the Prime Minister, and Chairman, Madras Faculty of Economics.

BIOGRAPHY – Chakravarthi Rangarajan

  • Chakravarthi Rangarajan is an Indian economist and 19th Governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
  • He is the former Chairman of the Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council, he resigned the day the UPA lost power. He is also the Chairman of the Madras School of Economics; former President of the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI).
  • He served as the Governor of Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Tamil Nadu.
  • He was also the chairman of the Twelfth Finance Commission.
  • In 2002, the Government of India awarded him the Padma Vibhushan, India’s second highest civilian award.
Madhya Pradesh launches ‘Hamara Ghar-Hamara Vidyalaya’ campaign
  • To maintain the academic regularity of students during the Corona crisis, the State Education Center has prepared a ‘HamaraGhar-HamaraVidyalaya’ means My Home-My school scheme, in which children will be taught at home in a school-like environment.
  • Under the scheme, the school bells are going to be heard within the student’s house and the teachers will begin the class of the students after the bell. It provides a school-like environment for the children taught at their home through online classes.

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July 03, 2020

Two new species of butterfly ‘Striped Hairstreak and Elusive Prince’ discoved in Arunachal Pradesh
  • Lepidopterists have discovered two new species of butterfly, namely the Striped Hairstreak and Elusive Prince, in Changlang district of Arunachal Pradesh
  • The Striped Hairstreak, was first recorded by Japanese entomologists in Hainan province of China. And the Elusive Prince, has a Vietnamese connection and was thought to be the more familiar Black Prince found in the Eastern Himalayas.
  • The findings from Arunachal Pradesh indicate the rich biodiversity of the State. India now has 1,327 species, up from 1,318 in 2015
  • The Striped Hairstreak (Yamamotozephyruskwangtugenesis) was located in Vijaynagar bordering Myanmar while the Elusive Prince was found in Miao on the periphery of the Namdapha National Park.
Delhi launches remote teaching-learning activities and LEAD portal
  • Delhi Education Minister Manish Sisodia announced the commencement of remote teaching-learning activities for students of city government schools.
  • The Directorate of Education has devised an alternate teaching-learning plan to reduce the academic loss of students in classes KG to XII of all government and aided schools in Delhi.
  • A plan of action in this regard has been worked out for the students through a combination of strategies using digital devices and support of the parents and the school managements.
  • Apart from these regular teaching-learning activities, additional optional online teaching-learning activities will be added from time to time to enhance the learning activities of the students.
  • Delhi Deputy Chief also launched a comprehensive e-learning portal called LEAD (Learning through E-Resources Made Accessible for Delhi)— which has more than 10,000 instructional materials and course content for school students.
  • Through LEAD, students will have access to textbooks, study material and course content as per the syllabus of the CBSE, NCERT and the Delhi government’s curriculum.
Global e-waste increased by 21% in five years, says UN
  • As per the UN’s Global E-waste Monitor 2020, a record 53.6 million metric tonnes of electronic waste was generated worldwide in 2019, up 21 per cent in just five years.
  • The prediction of global e-waste (defined as any discarded products with a battery or plug) will reach 74 Mt by 2030, almost a doubling of e-waste in just 16 years.
  • e-waste became world’s fastest-growing domestic waste stream, fuelled mainly by higher consumption rates of electric and electronic equipment, short life cycles, and few options for repair.
  • Region wise: Asia generated the greatest volume of e-waste in 2019, some 24.9 million metric tonnes, followed by the Americas (13.1 million metric tonnes) and Europe (12 million metric tonnes), while Africa and Oceania generated 2.9 million metric tonnes and 0.7 million metric tonnes respectively.
  • Only 17.4 per cent of 2019’s e-waste was collected and recycled.
  • E-waste is a health and environmental hazard, containing toxic additives and substances such as mercury, which damages the human brain and/or coordination system.

FACTFILE – The Global E-waste Monitor 2020

  • The Global E-waste Monitor 2020 is a collaborative product of the Global E-waste Statistics Partnership (GESP), formed by UN University, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), and the International Solid Waste Association, in collaboration with the UN Environment Programme.
Railways runs longest train ”SheshNaag” of 2.8-km length
  • The Indian Railways broke its own record of the longest train ever to run on Indian Railways, by operating ”SheshNaag”, a 2.8-km-long freight train. The South East Central Railway in Nagpur division attached long haul freight train consisting of four BOXN that is 251 wagons hauled by four electric locomotives.
  • The train had three rakes of 58 wagons and one rake of 59 wagons.
  • The whole train got the power of the four railway locomotives as a result. With this formation, Indian Railways will be able to save time required for the movement of freight trains in the Indian Railways network.
Bharti Airtel’s Ajai Puri appointed new Chairman of COAI
  • The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) announced the appointment of Ajai Puri, Chief Operating Officer (India and South Asia), Bharti Airtel as its Chairman for the year 2020-21.
  • Pramod Kumar Mittal, President, Reliance JioInfocomm, will be the Vice Chairman of the Association.
  • Ajai Puri has been with Bharti Airtel since 2004, and has held several senior leadership positions including Director for Market Operations and Director and CEO, DTH.
Indra Mani Pandey appointed India’s Permanent Representative to UN
  • Indra Mani Pandey has been appointed as India’s next Permanent Representative to the United Nations and other international organisations in Geneva.
  • Indra Mani Pandey, a 1990-batch Indian Foreign Service officer, is currently serving as an additional secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).
  • Before, Pandey served in Indian missions in Damascus, Cairo, Islamabad, Kabul, Muscat and Geneva.
  • He also served as joint secretary in the Disarmament and International Security Affairs division of the MEA.
Giriraj Singh launches the first edition of the Fisheries and Aquaculture Newsletter “Matsya Sampada”
  • Union Minister for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Shri Giriraj Singh launched the first edition of the Fisheries and Aquaculture Newsletter “MATSYA SAMPADA”. It would be published on a quarterly basis.
  • Published by the Department of Fisheries, Ministry for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Government of India and the Operational Guidelines of the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY).
  • The Newsletter is an outcome of the endeavours of the Department of Fisheries to reach out to the stakeholders especially fishers and fish farmers through various means of communication, and to inform and educate them about the latest developments in the fisheries and aquaculture sector.
Fitch slashes India’s growth projection from 9.5% to 8% for FY22
  • Fitch Ratings cut India’s growth forecast for 2021-22 fiscal to 8 per cent from 9.5 per cent projected last month. Though it retained projection of Indian economy contracting by 5 per cent in the current fiscal.
  • Indian economic growth stood at an estimated 4.2 per cent in 2019-20. Earlier, Fitch projected Indian economy to grow 5.5 per cent in 2022-23.
  • S&P has forecast a 5 per cent contraction in the current fiscal year and the growth to recover to 8.5 per cent next fiscal.
  • Moody’s predicts India’s real GDP to contract by 4 per cent in fiscal 2020 due to the shock from the coronavirus pandemic and related lockdown measures, followed by 8.7 per cent growth in fiscal 2021.

July 04, 2020

 Andhra Pradesh govt Launches Corporation for Outsourced Services
  • Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy launched the Andhra Pradesh Corporation for Outsourced Services (APCOS) to recruit employees for various government departments in the state.
  • The establishment of a separate department is expected to eliminate contractors and middlemen who used to control outsourcing for government services.
  • The move is part of the reforms undertaken by the state government to usher transparency in governance.
  • APCOS will handle processes such as recruitment and salaries, including the ESI and PF benefits. It will hand over 50,449 appointment letters to the employees working in various departments across Andhra Pradesh.
ICMR to launch 1st indigenous Covid vaccine by August 15
  • The Indian council of Medical Research (ICMR) plans to launch indigenous vaccine for COVID-19 by August 15 after the completion of the clinical trials. It has selected 13 institutions across the country for clinical trials and asked them to initiate subject enrollment by July 7.
  • ICMR Director General Balram Bhargava informed the selected institutions that it has partnered with Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech International Limited (BBIL) to fast-track clinical trials of the indigenous COVID-19 vaccine (BBV152 COVID vaccine).
  • The vaccine is being derived from a strain of SARS-CoV-2 isolated by ICMR-National Institute of Virology, Pune.
  • Institutions involved in vaccine trials include Nizam’s Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS), Hyderabad, King George Hospital, Visakhapatnam, University of Health Sciences, Rohtak, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi and AIIMS Patna.
RBI announces special liquidity scheme for NBFCs and HFCs
  • Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said the government of India has approved a scheme to improve the liquidity position of NBFCs/HFCs through a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to avoid any potential systemic risks to the financial sector.
  • To be eligible under the scheme, RBI laid out the conditions:
    • The Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFCs), including Microfinance Institutions that are registered with the RBI, under the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934, excluding those registered as Core Investment Companies.
    • Housing Finance Companies that are registered under the National Housing Bank Act, 1987.
    • CRAR/CAR of NBFCs/HFCs should not be below the regulatory minimum, i.e., 15% and 12% respectively as on March 31, 2019.
    • The net non-performing assets should not be more than 6% as on March 31, 2019.
    • They should have made net profit in at least one of the last two preceding financial years (i.e. 2017-18 and 2018-19)
    • They should not have been reported under SMA-1 or SMA-2 category by any bank for their borrowings during last one year prior to August 01, 2018.
    • They should be rated investment grade by a SEBI registered rating agency.
    • They should comply with the requirement of the SPV for an appropriate level of collateral from the entity, which, however, would be optional and to be decided by the SPV.
  • SBICAP has set up a SPV (SLS Trust) to manage this operation.
India-Bangladesh form 50:50 Joint Venture (JV) for LPG business in Bangladesh
  • India and Bangladesh signed an agreement for the formation of a 50:50 Joint Venture Company for LPG business in Bangladesh.
  • The agreement was signed between the IOC Middle East FZE, Dubai, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) and RR Holdings Ltd., Ras Al Khaimah, UAE, the holding company of Beximco LPG of Bangladesh.
  • The Joint Venture will help reduce the cost of imprt of LPG and make it more affordable for the consumers in Bangladesh. The LPG market in Bangladesh is fast expanding and the new project will draw upon the strengths of the Indian oil and Beximco in their respective areas.
  • The company plans to diversify into LPG export to the north eastern states of India from Bangladesh which will mutually benefit both the countries.
  • The new Joint venture company set up takes further the ‘neighbourhood first’ policy of the government of India. The energy cooperation between India and Bangladesh has made significant achievement in the recent years.
IIT Kanpur develops classroom-to-home teaching setup ‘Mobile Masterjee’
  • IIT Kanpur has developed a classroom-to-home teaching setup, named ‘Mobile Masterjee’, that can record the lectures by the teachers while using their available smart phones.
  • The product is lightweight and has adjustments to fit sheets and book on it for delivering instructions to the kids. The “Mobile Masterjee” can hold, position, and focus the whole recording setup, while making the online class a comfortable home environment. 

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July 05, 2020 

PM launched the Digital India Aatma Nirbhar Bharat Innovate Challenge
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Digital India AatmaNirbhar Bharat Innovate Challenge to identify the best Indian apps, already being used by citizens and have the potential to scale up and become world class.
  • The Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology along with the Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) have come up with this challenge, which will run in two tracks promotion of existing apps and development of new apps.
  • For the promotion of existing apps and platforms across the categories of e-learning, work-from-home, gaming, business, entertainment, office utilities and social networking, the government will provide mentoring, hand-holding and support.
India ranks 34th in Global Realty Transparency Index
  • India’s Global Real Estate Transparency Index ranking has improved by one rank to 34 on the back of regulatory reforms, better market data and green initiatives, according to property consultant JLL.
  • India was ranked 35th in the index during 2018 bi-annual survey, while the country was at 36th position in 2016 and 39th in 2014.
  • The United Kingdom ranks first in the list of 99 countries, followed by the United States, Australia, France, Canada, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Ireland, Sweden and Germany.
  • Top 10 countries are categorised as highly transparent, while those in the 11th position to 33rd are termed as transparent.
  • The INDIA rank of 34 is with higher levels of transparency observed due to regulatory reforms, enhanced market data and sustainability initiatives.
  • This improvement is led by structural reforms such as the Real Estate Regulation and Development Act 2016 (RERA), GST, Benami Transaction Prohibition (Amendment) Act, 2016, Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code and digitisation of land records have brought about greater transparency in what was an erstwhile largely unregulated sector a few years back.
Care Ratings forecasts Indian Economy to contract by 6.4%
  • Care Ratings revised India’s GDP growth forecast for the current financial year to – 6.4 per cent as economic activity continues to be under restriction due to the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown.
  • Forecast for GDP growth is now -6.4 per cent for FY21 with GVA degrowth estimated to be around -6.1 per cen.
  • The sharper fall in real GDP also means that the nominal GDP for the year will also decline assuming inflation of 5 per cent which in turn will affect the projected fiscal deficit number of the central government which will be in the region of 8 per cent for FY21.

July 05, 2020 

Government of India declares Nagaland as “Disturbed Area” for six more months
  • Union Govt declared the entire Nagaland as “disturbed area” for a further period of six months till December-end.
  • The Home Ministry notified that the area comprising the whole Nagaland is in such a disturbed and dangerous condition that the use of armed forces in aid of the civil power is necessary. Therefore, in exercise of the powers conferred by Section 3 of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958 (No.28 of 1958) the central government hereby declares that whole of the said State to be a ‘disturbed area’ for a period of six months with effect from 30th June, 2020 for the purpose of that Act.
  • Nagaland has been under the coverage of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) for almost six decades.
IIT Madras launches world’s first online BSc degree in Programming and Data Science
  • The Indian Institute of Technology Madras has launched the “world’s first” online BSc degree course in Programming and Data Science. The course will be open to anyone who has passed class 12 with English and Maths at class 10 level, and enrolled in any on-campus undergraduate course.
  • Even the current batch of students who are completing their class 12 are eligible to apply. Graduates and working professionals can also take up this programme.
  • The course will be offered in three different stages – Foundational Programme, Diploma Programme and Degree Programme. At each stage, students will have the freedom to exit from the programme and receive a certificate, diploma or a degree, respectively.
PM Modi dedicates Rewa Ultra Mega Solar Power project to nation
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi dedicated to the nation the Rewa Ultra Mega Solar Power project, to the nation via video conference.
  • Prime Minister said the Rewa project will make the entire region a major hub for pure and clean energy in this decade. Madhya Pradesh would be the main centre of solar energy in India, as such major projects are in progress in Neemuch, Shajapur, Chattarpur and Omkareshwar.
  • Solar energy as one which is ”Sure, Pure & Secure”. Sure because of the continuous supply of energy from the Sun, pure as it is environment friendly and secure because it is a secure source for our energy needs.

FACTFILE – Rewa Ultra Mega Solar

  • Rewa Ultra Mega Solar is the first solar project in India to break the grid parity barrier. It is an operational ground mounted, grid-connected photovoltaic solar park spread over an area of 6.4 km2 in the Gurh tehsil of Rewa district of Madhya Pradesh.
  • The project was commissioned with 750 MW capacity in December 2019.
  • This Solar plant is India’s first solar project to get funding from Clean Technology Fund (CTF), which is available at a rate of 0.25% for a 40-year period, and from the World Bank.

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July 07, 2020 

India Ranked 31st in INFORM Risk Index 2020 for Humanitarian crises & Disasters
  • India has been ranked at 31st position with an inform risk of 5.4, means risk of humanitarian crises and disasters. 
  • This report is produced by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN-OCHA) on behalf of all INFORM Partners. It is the first global, objective and transparent tool for understanding the risk of regions based upon crises and disasters.
  • The report considers the following while framing the index
    • Natural Factors: Tsunami, Earthquake, Drought, Flood, Epidemic and Tropical Cyclones;
    • Human Factors: Human Conflicts and conflict risks;
    • Socio-Economic factors: Inequality, vulnerable people, deprivation and aid dependency;
    • Institutional: DRR, Governance; Infrastructure: Communication, Physical infrastructure, Access to health system.
  • North Korea ranks among the most dangerous places to live as its people are exposed to high risks of natural disaster, poverty and social injustice. 
Black Panther spotted in Karnataka’s Nagarhole Tiger Reserve
  • A forest range officer (FRO) in Karnataka’s Nagarhole Tiger Reserve (NTR) spotted a black panther. About half a dozen black panthers in Karnataka forests and one in Nagarhole.
  • NTR stretches between Kodagu and Mysuru districts and was a protected reserve from the time of the Wodeyar dynasty, rulers of the erstwhile kingdom of Mysuru.

FACTFILE – Nagarhole National Park

  • Nagarhole, which served as an exclusive hunting reserve of the Wodeyars, was made a wildlife sanctuary in 1955, covering an area of 284 square km – later stretched up to 643 square km.
  • Nagarhole National Park is a national park located in Kodagu district and Mysore district in Karnataka, India. It is one of India’s premier Tiger Reserves along with the adjoining Bandipur Tiger Reserve and Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary.
  • This park was declared the thirty seventh Project Tiger, Tiger reserves of India in 1999. It is part of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve.
  • The park has a healthy predator-prey ratio, with many tigers, Gaur, elephants, Indian leopards, and deer.
Venkaiah Naidu launches social media app ‘Elyments’
  • Vice President, M Venkaiah Naidu launched India’s first indigenously developed social networking super app ‘Elyments’.
  • The Vice President urged every Indian to adopt the AtmaNirbhar Bharat campaign to transform “Local” India into a “Glocal” India.
  • The AtmaNirbhar Bharat Abhiyan was aimed at giving a new boost and a quantum jump to the economic potential of the country by strengthening infrastructure, using modern technologies, enriching human resource, and creating robust supply chains.
  • It was a launchpad for fostering entrepreneurship, nurturing innovation, and creation of an ecosystem for rural-urban symbiotic development.
  • Elyments is one of the first home-grown social media apps to emerge in the Indian market, developed by over 1,000 IT specialists, who are volunteers with spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravi Shankar’s The Art of Living organization.
  • The makers of Elyments have designed the app keeping in mind the user’s privacy as one of the primary keys of concern. It has an end-to-end encryption feature to ensure user’s private conversations are not seen by any third party.
Odisha Launches ‘Balaram’ Yojana 
  • Odisha government launched, ‘Balaram Yojana’ to provide crop loans to landless farmers. Under the new scheme the landless cultivators will get loans through joint liability groups (JLGs).
  • Under the scheme, the government has set a target to provide farm loans to 7 lakh landless farmers in next two years, with a kitty of Rs 1,040 crore.
  • IMAGE and Agricultural Technology Management Agencies (ATMA) will coordinate the implementation of the yojana at the State and the district levels, respectively.
  • 7,000 branches of several banks and Primary Agricultural Cooperative Societies will coordinate the implementation in rural and small towns.
CBSE tie-up with Facebook to introduce curriculum on digital safety
  • Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has partnered with Facebook to launch a curriculum to teach digital safety & online well-being and augmented reality (AR) to students and teachers.
  • The digital safety and online well-being curriculum will be rolled out in phases. In the first phase, from July to October, it will be implemented across national education boards such as CBSE. In the second phase, it will be made available to state education boards.
  • The curriculum will cover online safety, privacy, and mental health, and will use Instagram’s guide for building healthy digital habits.
  • The AR course will teach the fundamentals of AR and train students and teachers how to use Facebook’s Spark AR Studio platform to create augmented reality experiences.

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Assam Current Affairs and GK Quiz – Set 282: July 04-06, 2020

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Assam Current Affairs & GK Quiz Set 282 : July 04 – 06, 2020

( Daily and Monthly Assam Current Affairs & GK Quiz & MCQ for APSC Exams and various Assam exams)

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Q1. The government of which state has recently decided to upgrade Dehing Patkai Wildlife Sanctuary into a national park?

  1. Assam
  2. Odisha
  3. Tripura
  4. Sikkim
A. Assam

Dehing Patkai Wildlife Sanctuary was declared a sanctuary on 13 June 2004. It is located in the Dibrugarh and Tinsukia Districts of Assam.

 

Q2. Recently which state government has passed the draft ordinance to reserve 75% of private sector jobs to local people?

  1. Manipur
  2. Haryana
  3. Goa
  4. Mizoram
B. Haryana

The ordinance aims at reserving 75% of new jobs with salaries less than Rs. 50,000 per month in private firms, societies, trusts, limited liability partnership firms etc.

 

Q3. Which state had become the first in the country to have 100% LPG gas coverage?

  1. Madhya Pradesh
  2. Odisha
  3. Andhra Pradesh
  4. Himachal Pradesh
D. Himachal Pradesh

 

Q4. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate Asia’s largest 750-megawatt (MW) Rewa ultra-mega solar power project in which state?

  1. Tamil Nadu
  2. Maharashtra
  3. Madhya Pradesh
  4. Karnataka
C. Madhya Pradesh 

 

Q5. What is the rank of India in INFORM Risk Index 2020 for Humanitarian crises & Disasters?

  1. 23rd
  2. 46th
  3. 31st
  4. 18th

C. 31st  

 

Q6. Which IIT recently develops virtual classroom system ‘Mobile Masterjee’?

  1. IIT Guwahati
  2. IIT Madras
  3. IIT Kolkata
  4. IIT Kanpur
D. IIT Kanpur

Mobile Masterjee’ can capture the videos in horizontal and vertical positions. It is lightweight and has adjustments to fit sheets and book on it for delivering instructions to the kids. It is targeted at helping the rural schools overcome the teaching and learning challenges posed by the pandemic.

 

Q7. The All India Radio (AIR) will broadcast its first- ever ‘News Magazine’ programme in which of the following language?

  1. Hindi
  2. English
  3. Bengali
  4. Sanskrit
D. Sanskrit

All India Radio (AIR) FM news channel will be broadcasting its first-ever news programme in Sanksrit language for 20 minutes duration.  It has named the news programme ‘Sanskrit Saptahiki’, which will be broadcasted every Saturday.

 

Q8. Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) partnered with which company to launch a curriculum on Digital Safety and Augmented Reality for students and educators?

  1. Microsoft
  2. Google
  3. Facebook
  4. Apple

C. Facebook

 

Q9. Which organisation will establish a research cell at IIT-Hyderabad to meet the future defence technological requirements of the country?

  1. Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO)
  2. Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)
  3. National Defence Cell (NDC)
  4. National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD)
B. Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)

 

Q10. Recently which state/UT has launched a plantation drive called ‘Paudhe Lagao, Paryavaran Bachao’?

  1. New Delhi
  2. Madhya Pradesh
  3. Rajasthan
  4. Jammu and Kashmir
A. New Delhi

 

 

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Assam Current Affairs and GK Quiz – Set 281: July 01-03, 2020

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Assam Current Affairs & GK Quiz Set 281 : July 01 – 03, 2020

( Daily and Monthly Assam Current Affairs & GK Quiz & MCQ for APSC Exams and various Assam exams)

Assam 2020 Yearbook | Quiz Home Page | Quiz Monthly – July 2020 | Current Affairs Monthly – July 2020Current Affairs Assam Quiz - Assam exam

 

Q1. Recently, two new species of butterfly named- ‘Striped Hairstreak and Elusive Prince’ has been discovered in which state?

  1. Goa
  2. Arunachal Pradesh
  3. Bihar
  4. Punjab
B. Arunachal Pradesh

Striped Hairstreak found in Vijaynagar village of Changlang district of Arunachal Pradesh.  Elusive Prince is found in Miao subdivision situated on the periphery of the Namdapha National Park.

 

Q2. Government of India has declared entire area of which state as “Disturbed Area” for six more months?

  1. Assam
  2. Nagaland
  3. Arunachal Pradesh
  4. Mizoram
B. Nagaland

 

Q3. Which IIT has recently launches world’s first online B.Sc Degree in Programming and Data science?

  1. IIT Bangalore
  2. IIT Madras
  3. IIT Bombay
  4. IIT Delhi
B. IIT Madras

 

Q4. Who among the following has been recently appointed as the Solicitor General of India?

  1. Tushar Mehta
  2. Ramesh Bais
  3. Rakesh Tewari
  4. Pramod Kumar Misra
A. Tushar Mehta 

 

Q5. Asia’s first Continuous Galvanized Rebar Production Facility was inaugurated in which state recently?

  1. Maharashtra
  2. Jharkhand
  3. Punjab
  4. Uttar Pradesh

C. Punjab 

Union Minister of Steel Dharmendra Pradhan inaugurated Continuous Galvanized Rebar Production Facility at Mandi Gobindgarh in Punjab. It was launched by Madhav KRD Group in partnership with International Zinc Association (IZA) in the support of Hindustan Zinc Limited.

 

Q6. Who has been appointed as India’s next Permanent Representative to the United Nations and other international organisations in Geneva?

  1. Indra Mani Pandey
  2. Shrikant Madhav Vaidya
  3. Shashank Manohar
  4. Manu Sawhney
A. Indra Mani Pandey

 

Q7. The World Bank and the Government of India signed a loan agreement of what amount to enhance support for the Namami Gange programme that seeks to rejuvenate the Ganga?

  1. $500 million
  2. $400 million
  3. $800 million
  4. $300 million
B. $400 million

 

Q8. Recently, state has launched ‘Balaram’ to provide agricultural credit to landless farmers?

  1. Telangana
  2. Uttarakhand
  3. Odisha
  4. West Bengal

C. Odisha

The Scheme is designed in collaboration with National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD).

 

Q9. Who launched the 1st edition of “Matsya Sampada” – newsletter fisheries and aquaculture recently?

  1. Ravi Shankar Prasad
  2. Narendra Singh Tomar
  3. Giriraj Singh
  4. Pralhad Joshi
C. Giriraj Singh

Giriraj Singh, Union Minister for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, launched the 1st edition of “Matsya Sampada” – newsletter fisheries and aquaculture published by the Department of Fisheries and the operational guidelines of Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY)

 

Q10. Who laid foundation stone for “Sanskritik Sadbhav Mandap” in Uttar Pradesh?

  1. Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi
  2. Shripad Yasso Naik
  3. Narendra Singh Tomar
  4. Hardeep Singh Puri
A. Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi

Union Minister of Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi laid the foundation stone for “Sanskritik Sadbhav Mandap” at Numaish Ground in Rampur, Uttar Pradesh. It aims for a “Self-reliant India” which is the guarantee of “Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat”.

 

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Assam Current Affairs – June 29 – 30, 2020

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 Assam Current Affairs & GK – June 29 – 30, 2020

( Covers all important Assam Current Affairs & GK topics for the week of June 29 – 30, 2020 )

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  June 29, 2020

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) Forms Committee to investigate Assam Gas Leak
  • The National Green Tribunal (NGT) ordered for a high-level committee to look into the recent blowout at an Oil India Ltd (OIL) well in Baghjan, Assam.
  • NGT also asked the public sector company to deposit Rs 25 crore for damages caused.
  • The committee will have the mandate to examine the cause and damage from the blowout that occurred on May 27, 2020. The oil-and-gas well, owned by OIL, at Upper Assam’s Baghjan village subsequently caught fire on June 9, after leaking for about a fortnight.
  • An eight-member committee headed by Justice BP Katakey, a former Gauhati High Court judge, was formed to probe the incident. The committee headed by Justice Katakey will submit its report within 30 days after looking into 13 points listed by the NGT order.
  1. Cause of gas and oil leak
  2. Extent of loss and damage caused to human life, wildlife and environment
  3. Damage and health hazards to the public
  4. Possible contamination caused to water, air and soil around the oil well
  5. Extent of contamination of the Dibru river due to the oil spill
  6. Air quality monitoring, along with collecting soil and groundwater samples of the area and testing water from the Dibru
  7. Impact on the eco-sensitive Dibru-Saikhowa National Park and Maguri-Motapung wetland zone
  8. Impact on agriculture, fishery and domestic animals in the area
  9. Any mitigation measures put in place by OIL to offset incidents such as this one
  10. Individuals responsible for the fire incidents and the cause of failure to prevent the incident
  11. Assessment of compensation for victims and cost of restitution of damage caused to property and environment
  12. Preventive and remedial measures
  13. Any other incidental or allied issues
UP Governor Anandiben Patel given additional charge of MP
  • President Ram Nath Kovind has given Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel additional charge of Madhya Pradesh, in view of MP Governor Lalji Tandon’s poor health condition.
  • Patel has been given the additional duty of Madhya Pradesh, keeping in mind the current medical condition of Tandon.
PGIMER to conduct clinical trial for rapid antigen detection
  • The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has initiated a programme of clinical trials for rapid antigen detection for COVID-19 patients.
  • The procedure will not only help keep a track on the increasing number of COVID-19 patients but also enable easy access to detect the affected COVID-19 patients on a larger scale within a short span of time.
  • The ICMR has identified seven tertiary-care hospitals across the country to initiate trials and the PGIMER has been selected as one of the sites to be part of this programme for critically-ill COVID-19 patients.
Centre allocate 231 crore to Arunachal Pradesh to implement Jal Jeevan Mission
  • Under Jal Jeevan Mission the state will get Rs 231 crore under the 15th Finance Commission Grants to PRIs during 2020-21; 50 per cent of this amount has to be mandatorily to be spent on water and sanitation.
  • Arunachal Pradesh Government is also asked to expedite implementation of Jal Jeevan Mission, a flagship programme that aims to improve the lives of rural people by providing safe drinking water to every rural household through household tap connections by 2024.
  • Under Jal Jeevan Mission, water quality testing laboratories at district and state levels are given priority. Community is being involved for surveillance of water quality.
  • Arunachal Pradesh plans to provide cent per cent tap connections to all the households of the state by March, 2023 and accordingly the Centre has allocated an amount of Rs 255 crore for the state under the mission in 2020-21.
  • The state would be given additional funds in form of performance grants based on the achievement in terms of tangible outputs – the household tap connections and commensurate financial progress.
  • Of the 2.18 lakh total rural households in Arunachal Pradesh, 37,000 households have been already provided with tap connections.

 June 30, 2020

Kharchi Puja begins in Tripura
  • The week-long tradition Kharchi festival began at Khayerpur in West Tripura district amid COVID-19 pandemic. Kharchi Puja is one of the most important festivals of Tripura during which 14 deities are worshipped.
  • The formal inauguration programme was cancelled due to the pandemic. Raj Chantai opened the Chaturdash Devata temple after a ceremonial procession and offered prayers marking the beginning of the puja.
  • Additional security forces have been deployed in and around the temple to strictly enforce the COVID-19 guidelines like social distancing and wearing of masks.
Tushar Mehta and K.K. Venugopal reappointed as Solicitor General and Attorney General for India, respectively
  • The Appointments Committee of the Union Cabinet has approved the re-appointment of senior advocate Tushar Mehta as Solicitor General for a period of three years.
  • Senior advocate K.K. Venugopal has also been reappointed to the post of Attorney General for India for a period of one year.
  • The Centre has re-appointed Vikramjit Banerjee, Aman Lekhi, Madhavi Divan, K.M. Nataraj and Sanjay Jain as Additional Solicitors Generals for the Supreme Court for three years.
India bans 59 Chinese apps over national security concerns
  • Indian government banned nearly 59 Chinese apps including TikTok, WeChat and UC Browser and Xiaomi’s Mi Community over national security concerns. In this regard, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has issued a list of 59 Chinese apps that are now banned in the country.
  • These measures have been undertaken since there is credible information that these apps are engaged in activities which are prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, security of state and public order.
  • The compilation of these data, its mining and profiling by elements hostile to national security and defence of India, which ultimately impinges upon the sovereignty and integrity of India, is a matter of very deep and immediate concern which requires emergency measures.
  • The recommendations of the intelligence agencies have backing of the National Security Council Secretariat which determined that certain China-linked applications could be detrimental to the country’s security.
World’s largest Plasma Therapy trial centre launched in Maharashtra
  • Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray inaugurated ”Project PLATINA” – India’s first and the world’s largest Plasma Therapy Trial Centre in Nagpur.
  • This centre will help formulate definite treatment guidelines for the entire country in managing critical Covid-19 patients.
  • State sanctioned Rs 16.65 crore for Project Platina and clinical trials from the CM’s Relief Fund, and the project has been completed in barely three weeks.
  • With this project, the government hopes to save around 500 seriously ill Covid-19 patients in the state free of cost, amidst recent apprehensions of prohibitively high costs for this form of treatment expressed in some circles.
  • Each critical patient would receive 2 doses of 200 ml of convalescent plasma from recovered patients which contains antibodies against coronavirus that will fight the infection and help the serious patients recover.
  • Four other facilities were inaugurated Plasma Donation, Plasma Bank, Plasma Trial and Emergency Authorisation centres.
Karnataka unveils ‘Skill Connect’ portal for jobs in Karnataka 
  • Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa has unveiled ‘Skill Connect’ portal, which is a meeting point for job seekers and job givers in the state.
  • The portal offers a choice of industries for job seekers to choose and apply, such as automotive, banking and finance, hospitality, IT-enables services (ITeS), manufacturing, banking and others.
  • Upon registering on the website and uploading the skills and educational qualifications, an employer looking for such a prospective candidate will match up to directly contact without the role of an intermediary.
India, Bhutan sign pact on Kholongchhu hydel project
  • A concession agreement for the 600-MW Kholongchhu hydroelectric project between the Royal Government of Bhutan and Kholongchhu Hydro Energy Limited was signed in Thimphu in the virtual presence of India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Bhutan Foreign Minister Lyonpo (Dr) Tandi Dorji.
  • The 600-MW run-of-the-river project is located on the lower course of the Kholongchhu river in Trashiyangtse district in eastern Bhutan.
  • The project envisages an underground powerhouse of four 150-MW turbines with water impounded by a concrete gravity dam of 95 metres height. It will be implemented by Kholongchhu Hydro Energy Limited, a joint venture company formed between Druk Green Power Corporation of Bhutan and Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited of India.
  • this agreement will lead to commencement of construction and other works of this first joint venture hydroelectric project between India and Bhutan. The project is expected to be completed by 2025.
SAP India unveils “Global Bharat” initiative to make MSMEs globally competitive
  • SAP launched a new programme called “Global Bharat”, in association with Nasscom Foundation, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Pratham InfoTech Foundation, to enable Indian Micro, Small and Medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) become globally competitive by equipping them with digital technologies. The programme was launched
  • The initiative is aimed at driving greater efficiencies of MSMEs by adopting three initiatives gaining access to global marketplace, digitally skilling workforce and digitally transforming businesses.
  • Global Bharat, is an endeavour to enable MSMEs to augment business operations and re-access critical processes that overcome inefficiencies and make them globally competitive.
  • MSMEs will have open access to SAP Ariba Discovery where any buyer can post sourcing needs and any of the four million suppliers on Ariba Network can respond with their ability to deliver the goods and services required with no fees through December 31, 2020.
  • Business owners will have access to SAP India’s Code Unnati, a coveted “Golden Peacock Award” winning digital skilling initiative.
  • MSMEs will be provided accessibility to 240 courses, with more getting added in a few months, on digital financial, soft skills, productivity technologies that will digitally skill the workforce and adapt to the new working environments.
Bharat Biotech Covid vaccine Covaxin gets permission for human clinical trials
  • Bharat Biotech has successfully developed Covaxin, India’s first vaccine candidate for Covid-19, in collaboration with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and National Institute of Virology (NIV), which will begin its human trials next month.
  • The Drug Controller General of India – Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO), Ministry of Health & Family Welfare granted permission to initiate Phase I and II human clinical trials after the company submitted results generated from preclinical studies, demonstrating safety and immune response.
  • The indigenous, inactivated vaccine was developed and manufactured in Bharat Biotech’s BSL-3 (Bio-Safety Level 3) High Containment facility located in Genome Valley, Hyderabad.
Union Minister of Tribal Affairs launches Tribes India products on Gem
  • Ministry of Tribal affairs has initiated several immediate initiatives to re-energise the lagging economic activity for sustaining the livelihood development of tribals.
  • The Union Minister of Tribal Affairs inaugurated the TRIBES India store on Government eMarketplace which can help in facilitating purchases by Government and then the revamped website (https://trifed.tribal.gov.in/), which has all relevant details about the schemes and initiatives underway to the benefit of tribal communities.
  • The Tribes India e-Marketplace, coming on the heels of the Retail Inventory Management System which has automated the sourcing and sale of stocks, is an ambitious initiative to on-board almost 5 lakh Tribal Artisans on the e- market platform to provide them access to national and international markets.
  • TRIFED’s VanDhan Integrated Information Network facilitates the pooling of all information pertaining to forest dwellers engaged in Minimum Support Price Operations and its VanDhan Yojana linking them up to Village haats and Warehouses.
Indian Navy inducts indigenously developed Torpedo Decoy System Maareech
  • Anti-Submarine Warfare capability of the Indian Navy received a major boost with the induction of Advanced Torpedo Decoy System Maareech capable of being fired from all frontline warships.
  • Design and Development of this anti-torpedo decoy system has been undertaken indigenously by DRDO labs-(NSTL and NPOL). 
  • The Bharat Electronics Limited would undertake the production of this decoy system.

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Assam Current Affairs – June 22 – 28, 2020

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Assam Current Affairs & GK – June 22 – 28, 2020

( Covers all important Assam Current Affairs & GK topics for the week of June 22 – 28, 2020 )

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June 22, 2020

DoNER sanctioned Rs 190 crore to boost NE healthcare facilities

  • Union DoNER Minister Jitendra Singh said Rs 190 crore has been sanctioned for augmentation of healthcare facilities in the eight Northeastern states, especially for the management of infectious diseases like COVID-19.
  • In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, the Ministry of DoNER has decided to sanction Rs 190 crore for augmentation of healthcare facilities in the eight Northeastern states for developing infrastructure for management of infectious diseases.
  • Through a scientifically designed mechanism, each 14 ‘aspirational districts’ of the Northeast was to focus on improving these key indicators and raise its rating viz-a-viz the best performing district of the state and the country in the given indicators.
  • The Ministry of DoNER has given the Northeastern states the option to send proposals for health-related projects to be funded from Rs 500 crore under the North East Special Infrastructure Development Scheme (NEISDS).
  • Proposals have been received from Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Manipur, Sikkim, Mizoram and Nagaland, while the proposal from Tripura was awaited.
  • The DoNER Minister complemented Assam’s ‘aspirational districts’ Goalpara and Dhubri for having achieved Ayushman Bharat coverage of nearly 100 per cent and 85 per cent respectively. Goalpara has within six months raised its rating from the 68th position to 16 in the all-India list of 150 ‘aspirational districts’.
Glenmark launches new coronavirus medicine ‘Favipiravir’
  • After recieving the manufacturing and marketing approval from the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI), drug firm Glenmark Pharmaceuticals has launched antiviral drug Favipiravir, under the brand name FabiFlu, for the treatment of patients with mild to moderate COVID-19 patients.
  • Price at ₹103 per tablet, the prescription-based drug will be available as a 200 mg tablet at an MRP of ₹3,500 for a strip of 34 tablets.
  • Glenmark is producing the Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (API) for the drug at its Ankleshwar plant, while the formulation is being manufactured at its Baddi plant.
  • Favipiravir can be used for coronavirus patients with co-morbid conditions such as diabetes and heart disease with mild to moderate COVID-19 symptoms.
  • It offers rapid reduction in viral load within four days and provides faster symptomatic and radiological improvement.
  • Favipiravir is backed by strong clinical evidence, showing encouraging results in patients with mild to moderate Covid-19. As it has shown clinical improvement of up to 88 per cent in mild to moderate COVID-19 cases.
  • Glenmark was the first company in India to receive the drug regulator (DCGI)’s approval to conduct phase-3 clinical trial of Favipiravir antiviral tablets for Covid-19 patients.

Point2Remember

  • Favipiravir is a generic version of Avigan of Fujifilm Toyama Chemical, Japan, a subsidiary of Fujifilm Corporation.

FACTFILE – Glenmark Pharmaceuticals

  • Glenmark Pharmaceuticals is a pharmaceutical company headquartered in Mumbai, India that was founded in 1977 by Gracias Saldanha as a generic drug and active pharmaceutical ingredient manufacturer.
  • The company went public in India in 1999, and used some of the proceeds to build its first research facility.
  • By 2011 Glenmark had worldwide sales of $778 million and the growth was driven by Glenmark’s entry into the US and European generics markets.
  • The company took down the path of seeking innovation and focused on new drugs and biosimilars in the fields of cancer, dermatology and respiratory diseases, which it sought to monetize by partnering with major pharmaceutical companies.
  • For the financial year 2016–2017 its sales were around 81 billion INR, making it the fourth-biggest Indian pharmaceutical company.

 June 23, 2020

Tea exports declined by 5.6 per cent in fiscal year 2019-20
  • Tea exports have declined marginally in the last fiscal to 240 million kg from 254.50 million kg from the previous fiscal year of 2018-19. This dip is mainly due to economic slowdown across the globe.
  • Exports to Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) countries, the biggest importer of India tea, dropped to 59.40m kg in the last fiscal from 60.72 million kg in 2018-19.
  • Iran is the second largest importer of Indian Tea, which imported 46.47 million kg in 2019-20, up from 41.02 million kg in the 2018-19. Simimlary China also imported 12.71 million kg in the last fiscal year as compared to 10.58 million kg in the previous year.
  • Exports to Pakistan,saw a significant drop, from 14.6 million kg in 2018-19 to 3.3 mkg the previous fiscal.
  • The US, the UK and the UAE are the other three destinations where the exports had touched double digits in 2019-20.
  • The production of tea in March 2020, witnessed a steep fall to 43.45 million kg from 74.59 million kg in the corresponding period of 2018-19, mainly due to Covid crisis.

India retains position as third-largest economy on PPP

  • India has retained and consolidated its position as the third-largest economy after China and the US in terms of purchasing power parity (PPP) for 2017, as per the World Bank data.
  • PPP of the rupee per dollar at the gross domestic product (GDP) level rose to 20.65 in 2017 from 15.55 in 2011, while the exchange rate of a dollar to a rupee rose to 65.12 from 46.67 during the period.
  • Price Level Index (PLI), the ratio of a PPP to its corresponding market exchange rate, which is used to compare the price levels of economies, improved to 47.55 in 2017 from 42.99 in 2011.
  • In 2017, India retained and consolidated its global position, as the third-largest economy, accounted for 6.7 per cent (USD 8,051 billion out of world total of USD 119,547 billion) of global GDP in terms of PPPs as against China (16.4 per cent) and the US (16.3 per cent), respectively.
  • India is also third-largest economy in terms of its PPP-based share in global actual individual consumption and global gross capital formation, as per a release from National Statistical Office (NSO).
  • The World Bank has released new PPPs for the reference year 2017, under the International Comparison Program (ICP) that adjust for differences in the cost of living across economies of the world.
  • As per the release, in 2017, India retained its regional position, as the second-largest economy, accounted for 20.83 per cent of the regional gross domestic product (GDP) in terms of PPPs where China was at 50.76 per cent (first) and Indonesia at 7.49 per cent (third).

FACTFILE – List of countries by GDP (PPP)

  • GDP comparisons using PPP are more useful than those using nominal GDP when assessing a nation’s domestic market because PPP takes into account the relative cost of goods, services and inflation rates of the respective country, rather than using one standard market exchange rates for all countries.

List by the IMF (2020)

Rank

Country

GDP
(millions of US $)

1

 China

27,804,953

2

 United States

20,289,987

3

 India

11,321,280

4

 Japan

5,451,452

5

 Russia

4,176,350

6

 Germany

4,160,925

7

 Indonesia

3,778,134

8

 Brazil

3,316,920

9

 United Kingdom

2,975,557

10

 France

2,860,018

 

 Punjab cabinet approves fast-track clearance of MSMEs

  • To ease the regulatory burden on micro, small and medium enterprises and fast-tracking setting up of MSMEs, the Punjab cabinet approved the Punjab Right to Business Rules, 2020.
  • The new rules have been drafted under provisions of the Punjab Right to Business Act.
  • Sanctions and approvals pertaining to building plan, completion certificate, trade licence registration, land-use change, factory building plan, as well as registration of shops or establishments, will be granted by the district-level nodal agency, headed by the Deputy Commissioner.
  • For setting up of units in the approved industrial parks, the certificate of in-principle approval would be issued within three working days after the submission of declaration of intent.

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June 24, 2020

Deccan Development Society received the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation Award

  • Hyderabad-based Deccan Development Society has received the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation Award, one of probably the most coveted environmental awards on this planet for the year 2020.
  • This is in recognition of the individuals who dedicate their actions and organisations for their deep commitment to preserving our planet, in each of the Foundation’s three priority areas: limiting the effects of climate change, preserving biodiversity, managing water resources and fighting against desertification.
  • The award of 40,000 Euros has been given to the society in recognition of the work of DDS women to rehabilitate degraded lands and promote biodiversity.
  • The Prince Monaco Award is available in a sequence of particular awards for DDS introduced by varied teams within the final 12 months, on prime of which was the UNDP’s prestigious Equator Award adopted by Shinning World Protection Award for “its noble, gracious and loving efforts to improve our world”.

10 MPs to be conferred with Sansad Ratna award

  • Eight sitting Lok Sabha members and two Rajya Sabha members will be presented the Sansad Ratna Awards 2020 under various categories, based on their performance during the first year of the 17th Lok Sabha.
  • The departmentally related Standing Committee on Agriculture headed by BJP MP P.C. Gaddigoudar has been chosen for the Sansad Ratna Awards 2020 for their performance in the 17th Lok Sabha.
  • NCP MP Supriya Sule gets the Sansad Ratna Award 2020 for her overall performance in initiating debates, the number of questions asked and the Private Members Bills in the first year of the 17th Lok Sabha.
  • BJP MP Subhash Ramrao Bhamre, Heena Gavit and NCP MP Amol Ramsing Kolhe will be receiving the Sansad Ratna Award 2020 for Questions, Women and First-time MPs categories respectively.
  • Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, BJP MP Nishikant Dubey), Ajay Misra and TDP  MP Ram Mohan Naidu have been nominated for the ”Jury Committee Special Award” for their overall qualitative performance and individual efforts.
  • The awardees were selected by a three member Jury Committee of Arjun Ram Meghwal, N. K. Premachandran and Shrirang Appa Barne.

PM CARES allocates funds for 50000 ‘Made in India’ ventilators

  • The PM CARES Fund Trust has allocated Rs 2,000 crore for the supply of 50,000 ”Made in India” ventilators to the government run COVID-19 hospitals in all states and Union Territories (UTs).
  • Of the total ventilators, 30,000 are being manufactured by the Bharat Electronics Limited. The remaining 20,000 ventilators are being manufactured by the AgVa Healthcare (10,000), AMTZ Basic (5,650), AMTZ High End (4,000) and Allied Medical (350).
  • So far 2,923 ventilators have been manufactured, out of which 1,340 have already been delivered to the states and UTs. The prominent recipients include Maharashtra (275), Delhi (275), Gujarat (175), Bihar (100), Karnataka (90), Rajasthan (75). By the end of June 2020, additional 14,000 ventilators will be delivered to all states and UTs.

Amazon launches $2 billion fund to invest in climate change mitigation

  • Amazon has announced a $2 billion venture capital fund to invest in companies whose products and services will facilitate the transition to a zero carbon economy.
  • The announcement is part of the Climate Pledge – a commitment to reach the Paris Agreement ten years early and be net zero carbon by 2040 which was co-founded by Amazon and non-profit Global Optimism last year.
  • Companies like Verizon, Reckitt Benckiser (RB), and Infosys recently joined the pledge.
  • The Climate Pledge Fund will look to invest in the visionary entrepreneurs and innovators who are building products and services to help companies reduce their carbon impact and operate more sustainably.
  • Each prospective investment will be judged on its potential to accelerate the path to zero carbon and help protect the planet for future generations.

ICMR allows rapid antigen test for Covid-19 detection

  • The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) recommended newer additional strategies for Covid-19 testing, allowing the use of an antigen test to fast-track testing and tracing of positive cases and ease burden on the current RT-PCR test.
  • It has recommended to use Standard Q Covid-19 Ag detection test as a point of care diagnostic assay for testing in the containment zones as well as hospitals in combination with the gold standard RT-PCR test.

FACTFILE – Rapid Antigen Detection Test For Covid-19

  • It is a test on swabbed nasal samples that detects antigens that are found on or within the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
  • It is a point-of-care test, performed outside the conventional laboratory setting, and is used to quickly obtain a diagnostic result.
  • ICMR has allowed the use of antigen detection kits developed by the South Korean company S D Biosensor. The kit, commercially called Standard Q COVID-19 Ag detection kit, comes with a with an inbuilt Covid antigen test device, viral extraction tube with viral lysis buffer and sterile swab for sample collection.

ISRO gets Indian patent for liquid cooling and heating garment

  • The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has got an Indian patent for its liquid cooling and heating garment (LCHG) that is suitable for space applications. The patent is valid for 20 years from the date of application.
  • While ISRO is the patentee, the four inventors are Srirangam Siripothu, Reshmi Balachandran, Saraswathi Kesava Pillai Manu, and Gurumurthy Chandrasekaran.
  • The garment made of biocompatible fabrics and parts to provide comfortable body temperature and removal of sweat. These garments find use in manned space flights and also for earth-bound operations such as firefighting.

 June 25, 2020

Highlights of India TB report 2020

  • Union Ministerof Health Harsh Vardhan released the ”India TB report 2020” and assured that the country can win the fight against TB even before 2025. The Annual TB Report is prepared and published by the Central TB Division, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, GOI.
  • In 2017, the Central Government had developed the National Strategic Plan (NSP) for eradication of Tuberculosis with a goal of ending it by 2025.
  • Some states/UTs have made a commitment to eradicate it even before 2025. Himachal Pradesh aims to get rid of it by 2021 and Sikkim and Lakshadweep by 2022.
  • Over 24.04 lakh patients were notified in 2019, an increase of 14 per cent over the previous year.
  • The report highlights that out of the 10 lakh missing cases across the country, 7.81 lakh cases were found and up to 2.9 lakh are missing or failed to be picked up.
  • Gujarat was accorded the best performing state for its work on eradication of TB, followed by Andhra Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh.
  • Provision of HIV testing for all notified TB patients increased from 67% in 2018 to 81% in 2019.
  • 12% improvement in the treatment success rate of notified patients. For 2019, it is 81% compared to 69% in 2018.

FACTFILE – National Tuberculosis Elimination Program

  • Centrally Sponsored Scheme being implemented under the aegis of the National Health Mission with resource sharing between the State Governments and the Central Government.
  • The goal of the program is to achieve a TB-free India with zero deaths, disease and poverty due to tuberculosis.

Andhra Pradesh partners with ISB for post-Covid economic revival

  • The Andhra Pradesh government has partnered with the Indian School of Business (ISB) Hyderabad as a nodal agency to revive economic growth in the state post Covid-19 and to formulate a roadmap for sustainable development.
  • Minister for Industries, Information Technology and Skills, M. Goutham Reddy interacted with key professors to discuss strategies to revive economic growth in the state and come up with a long term roadmap for sustainable development in the state through data-driven policy making.
  • Various key areas of engagement were identified to be taken up as project mode including Andhra Pradesh Pulse, an advanced data analytics application using near real-time digital data on citizen interactions with government schemes and systems.
  • It will also try to use the skills of returning migrants workers who can be deployed productively in local jobs requiring similar or adjacent skills, which will also contribute to local economic recovery. 
  • ISB would contribute towards building a system to record the skill sets of returning migrants in order to assess the gap between skills and available jobs in post-pandemic times.

Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approved setting up of Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund

  • The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved setting up of Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund (AHIDF) worth Rs. 15000 crore.
  • Government has been implementing several schemes for incentivizing the investment made by dairy cooperative sector for development of dairy infrastructure.
  • Government realizes that even MSMEs and Private companies also need to be promoted and incentivized for their involvement in processing and value addition infrastructure.
  • Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund (AHIDF) would facilitate much needed incentivisation of investments in establishment of such infrastructure for dairy and meat processing and value addition infrastructure and establishment of animal feed plant in the private sector.
  • The eligible beneficiaries would be Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs), MSMEs, Private Companies and individual entrepreneur with minimum 10% margin money contribution by them. The balance 90% would be the loan component to be made available by banking sector.
  • Government of India would also set up Credit Guarantee Fund of Rs. 750 crore to be managed by NABARD. Credit guarantee would be provided to those sanctioned projects which are covered under MSME defined ceilings.

Cabinet approval for additional investment of Rs.900 in oil & gas project in Myanmar

  • The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved additional investment of about Rs.909 crore  by ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL) towards further development of blocks A-1 and A-3 Blocksof Shwe oil & gas project in Myanmar.
  • ONGC Videsh Ltd. (OVL) has been associated with exploration and development of Shwe project in Myanmar since 2002, as part of consortium of companies from South Korea, India and Myanmar.
  • OVL has invested US$ 722 million till 31st March 2019 in this project. The first gas from the Shwe Project was received in July 2013 and plateau production was reached in December 2014. The participation of PSUs in oil & gas exploration and development projects in neighbouring countries is aligned with India’s Act East Policy, and also part of India’s efforts to develop Energy Bridges with its immediate neighbors.

 FACTFILE – ONGC Videsh Limited (OVL)

  • ONGC Videsh Limited (OVL) is the international arm of ONGC.
  • The primary business of ONGC Videsh is to prospect for oil and gas acreages outside India, including exploration, development and production of oil and gas.
  • Presently, it has 38 projects in 17 countries.

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June 26, 2020

Vivekananda Yoga University (VaYU), World’s first Yoga University outside India was launched at US

  • World’s first yoga university outside of India has been launched in Los Angeles, offering programmes that combine scientific principles and modern research approaches to the ancient Indian practice of yoga.
  • The Vivekananda Yoga University (VaYU) was jointly launched by Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan and Chairperson of the Standing Committee on External Affairs P P Chaudhary during a virtual event held at the Consulate General of India in New York. 
  • Eminent Indian yoga guru Dr. H R Nagendra, Chancellor of Swami Vivekananda Yoga Anusandhana Samsthana (SVYASA) is the first Chairman of the Vivekananda Yoga University. 
  • Founded on the principles of Swami Vivekananda’s preion for universal welfare, VaYU will offer online graduate programmes based on scientific principles and modern research approaches to yoga.

IBM announces free digital learning platform ‘SkillsBuild Reignite’ for jobseekers in India

  • IBM announced a free digital learning platform ‘SkillsBuild Reignite’ as part of its SkillsBuild initiative to help jobseekers and provide new resources to business owners in India.
  • The platform will give access to free online coursework and mentoring support, designed to help people reinvent their careers and businesses.
  • IBM launched SkillsBuild in collaboration with the Directorate General of Training under the aegis of the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE), which has already benefited 14,135 learners who have completed 40,000 courses and 77,000 hours of e-learning.
  • The SkillsBuild Reignite will include more coursework and personalised coaching for entrepreneurs seeking advice to help establish or restart their small businesses. The courses include financial management, business strategy, digital strategy etc.

Australia and New Zealand to host the 2023 Women’s Football World Cup

  • Australia and New Zealand were handed the right to host the 2023 Women’s World Cup football tournament by a comfortable margin after a vote by the FIFA Council.
  • They beat a rival bid from Colombia to host the tournament which is being expanded to 32 teams.
  • The report highlighted the infrastructure and organisational advantages of the Australia/New Zealand bid which FIFA believed would make for a commercially successful tournament.

June 27, 2020

MF projects India’s economy to contract by 4.5% in FY21

  • International Monetary Fund said the India’s economy is projected to contract by 4.5 per cent this fiscal, on the back of a longer lockdown and a slower recovery than anticipated.
  • India’s economy will contract in FY21 from an expansion of 4.2 per cent in FY20. And for fiscal 2021-22, IMF projected a growth of 6 per cent for the country.
  • India has unveiled a liquidity support programme worth 4.5 per cent of GDP through loans and guarantees for businesses and farmers and equity injections into financial institutions and the electricity sector.
  • IMF also projected a -4.9 per cent contraction in global growth during 2020. The Covid-19 pandemic has had a more negative impact on activity in the first half of 2020 than anticipated, and the recovery is projected to be more gradual than previously forecast.

President clears ordinance to bring cooperative banks under RBI

  • The Centre has brought urban and multi-state cooperative banks under the direct supervision of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) with President Ram Nath Kovind promulgating the Banking Regulation (Amendment) Ordinance, 2020.
  • The government had issued ordinance to operationalise new provisions of the Act quickly in the interest of millions of depositors who use the cooperative channel to undertake banking transactions.
  • The Ordinance aims to protect the interests of depositors and strengthen cooperative banks by improving governance and oversight by extending powers already available with RBI in respect of other banks to Co-operative Banks as well for sound banking regulation, and by ensuring professionalism and enabling their access to capital.
  • The amendments does not affect existing powers of the State Registrars of Co-operative Societies under state co-operative laws. It will not be applicable on Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) or co-operative societies whose principal business is long-term finance for agricultural development, and which do not use the word “bank” or “banker” or “banking” and do not act as drawees of cheques.

36th ASEAN summit starts via video conference

  • The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) opened its 36th summit with the theme “Cohesive and Responsive ASEAN”, chaired by Vietnam via video conference, which focused onthe COVID-19 epidemic response, post-pandemic recovery and further cooperation with partners.
  • On the opening ceremony of the summit, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said he expected the summit to be an opportunity to once again affirm the strong solidarity, political will, and determination of ASEAN member countries to overcome difficulties.
  • The ASEAN needs to continue to effectively control the COVID-19 epidemic and overcome the consequences of the epidemic while recovering and keeping on economic development.
  • The summit will discuss the regional comprehensive post-pandemic recovery plans, implement initiatives including establishing the ASEAN COVID-19 response fund, setting up a reserve for medical supplies to meet urgent needs during epidemics, building the ASEAN standard procedures of epidemic response in case of health emergency.

FACTFILE – The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)

  • The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is a regional intergovernmental organization comprising ten countries in Southeast Asia, to promotes intergovernmental cooperation and facilitates economic, political, security, military, educational, and sociocultural integration among members and other countries in Asia.
  • A major partner of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, ASEAN maintains a global network of alliances and dialogue partners and is considered by many as a global powerhouse, the central union for cooperation in Asia-Pacific, and a prominent and influential organization.
  • Established in 1967, the ASEAN comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Bengaluru International Airport becomes India’s first airport to install AWMS technology on runway

  • The Bengaluru International Airport Ltd (BIAL), which operated the Kempegowda International Airport, has installed an indigenously-developed Aviation Weather Monitoring System (AWMS) at its new runway.
  • BIAL has become the first airport in the country to install indigenous AWMS technology developed by Bengaluru-based CSIR-National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL) at both ends of the new runway.
  • The airport has also installed four Drishti transmissometers, which is also developed by NAL, in association with the India Metrological Department (IMD) to measure the Runway Visibility Range (RVR).
  • The Drishti transmissometer is acclaimed for precise reporting, helping pilots with an accurate runway visual range. It is suitable for all categories of airports such as CAT I, CAT II, CAT III A & B and measures RVR down to 25 meters.
  • With AWMS and RVR integrated, the data is displayed on one single display screen. With the web-enabled feature, the data can be accessed, and maintenance carried out from any location. 

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JUNE 28, 2020

Amartya Sen wins 2020 Peace Prize of the German Book Trade

  • Nobel prize-winning economist and philosopher Amartya Sen has won the prestigious Peace Prize of the German Book Trade for the year2020.
  • The 86-year-old Harvard professor and Nobel laureate was granted the peace prize for his decades-long work addressing global social injustice.

FACTFILE – Peace Prize of the German Book Trade

  • The Peace Prize of the German Book Trade comes with a cash prize of €25,000 euros.
  • The prize has been awarded annually since 1950.
  • Its aim is to honor individuals “who have made an outstanding contribution to the realization of the idea of peace, primarily through their activities in the fields of literature, science and art.”

Union Govt approves the Action Plan of Rajasthan for implementation of Jal Jeevan Mission

  • Rajasthan presented the Annual Action Plan on Jal Jeevan Mission. Union Minister of Jal Shakti, Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat has earlier written to the Chief Minister of Rajasthan expressing his concerns over the slow progress of Jal Jeevan Mission in the State.
  • Central Govt has approved fund of ₹2,522.03 Crore for implementation of Jal Jeevan Mission in Rajasthan in 2020-21, which is a considerable increase from ₹ 1,051 Crore in 2019-20.
  • Out of 1.1 Crore rural households in the Rajasthan, 12.36 Lakh households have already been provided with tap connections (FHTCs).
  • In 2019-20, only 1.02 Lakh tap connections were provided. In 2020-21, the State is planning to enable 20.69 Lakh households with tap water connections.
  • The state plans to provide potable water to 57.77 Lakh population of the State residing in 5,864 villages affected by Fluoride, salinity, Nitrate and Iron.

Shantanu Moitra becomes WWF India’s Harmony and Hope ambassador

  • Famous music composer Shantanu Moitra was announced as the WWF India”s Ambassador for Harmony and Hope for Human-Wildlife Co-existence.
  • Through Moitra’s association with the cause, WWF India will highlight the stories of local communities who reside in forest fringe areas across the country and are stewards of conservation.
  • Shantanu, through his association, will tell stories of positive stories of co-existence between people and wildlife in the country.

Virgin Galactic inks pact with NASA for private passenger trips to ISS

  • Virgin Galactic announced the signing of an agreement with NASA to encourage commercial participation in orbital human spaceflight to the International Space Station (ISS).
  • Virgin Galactic said that these trips may not be limited to people for space tourism purposes only.
  • Under this Space Act Agreement agreement, Virgin Galactic will develop a new private orbital astronaut readiness programme. This programme will include identifying candidates interested in purchasing private astronaut missions to the ISS, the procurement of transportation to the ISS, on-orbit resources, and ground resources.
  • NASA is seeing greater demand for use of the ISS for scientific and technological research and development, commercial activity, and international collaboration.
  • NASA will leverage Virgin Galactic’s commercial expertise and industry knowledge.
  • Virgin Galactic will also contribute end-to-end programme management and integrated astronaut training packages for private passengers, tailored to meet the needs for a commercial orbital space flight experience.
  • The space tourism company has already developed a customised Future Astronaut Readiness programme for its customers flying out of Spaceport America in New Mexico.

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